KOTA BHARU, April 21 — A man was injured after he was shot in the chin in Ladang Kemahang, Tanah Merah, early yesterday morning.

Tanah Merah district police chief Supt Mohd Haki Hasbullah said the shooting occurred at about 2.30am, when a salesman and his friends, who were patrolling the area looking for cow thieves from 1.30am, came across a group of about five men, both foreign and local.

“The suspects were then believed to have fired a few shots from close range at the salesman and his friends,” he said in a statement yesterday, adding that the salesman and his friends ran away to save themselves.

One of the salesman’s friends, Mohd Khairul Amri Ab Kadir, 43, was hit in the chin and was taken to Tanah Merah Hospital for further treatment.

The shooting victim’s Honda EX5 motorcycle was also reportedly stolen by a suspect, believed to be local during the shooting, he said, adding that the police are currently looking for the five suspects involved.

He urged those with information about the shooting to assist investigations by contacting the nearest police station.

Meanwhile, the shooting victim’s brother, Mohd Amirul Akil, 38, said that his brother was out patrolling with several other residents to check up on their cows in the Lalang Pepuyu area when one of them came across a group of men on a three-wheeled motorcycle.

“Not long after, several shots were fired by the group, one of which hit my brother’s chin.

“Residents in the area immediately rushed him to the hospital for treatment,” he said at his house in Kemahang 1 here yesterday.

He added that cow thefts had been reported in the area before as many livestock are left to roam freely by residents.

He shared that the thieves are believed to use tranquilisers on the cows before transferring them in vehicles to be gathered up elsewhere. — Bernama