Police shot dead two men suspected of being criminals in a shootout at Kampung Sungai Sam, Kuala Krai, on Sunday.

Kelantan police chief, Datuk Jalaluddin Abdul Rahman said their two accomplices, however, fled into the jungle nearby and police were tracking them down.

The incident occurred between noon and 1pm after the four, believed to be an armed robbery gang, abducted a male clerk of a finance company and robbed him of RM50,000 just withdrawn from a bank in Kuala Krai town.

"The four suspects who were in a Perodua MyVi car had trailed the clerk who was in a Proton Saga before abducting him togetner with the money and drove for about 50 kilometres.

"They then left the 23-year-old clerk by the roadside. On receiving information on the incident, police went looking for the suspects who were in the MyVi," he said after launching Ops Selamat II in Kubang Kerian, here, in conjunction with the Chinese New Year celebration.

Jalaluddin said when police tried to stop the car, the suspects fired four shots. During the shootout that ensued, two suspects aged 22 and 29, from Kuala Krai, were shot dead.

"We are now looking for the two other suspects who fled from the scene, including using tracker dogs," he said.
Jalaluddin said the initial police investigation found that only RM15,200 of the money robbed was recovered from the scene.

He urged members of the public with information on the suspects to contact the police to facilitate the investigation.