Perak acting police chief Zulkafli Sariaat said a team of officers from the Perak police headquarters had been patrolling the area under Op Casa Muallim when they came across a suspicious-looking Proton Persona car at the location at 5.20am.

They closed in on the car and ordered the driver to stop for inspection, but the driver sped off, forcing the officers to give chase over a distance of about 4km before the car veered off the road.

As soon as the car came to a halt, one of the suspects fired a shot at the police car, hitting the vehicle’s light.

“One suspect came out of the car and fired another shot at the police team while another suspect came running towards the police with a machete.

“The police had no choice but to return fire in an attempt to defend themselves,” Zulkafli said at the district police headquarters in Muallim.

Police later found that the driver and the front passenger, aged 29 and 37 respectively, had died from gunfire.

Zulkafli said that after further investigations, a Sig Seuer pistol with a bullet in it, as well as six bullet casings, two machete blades, a fake vehicle plate, and a metal cutter were found in the car.

“Checks found that the 29-year-old suspect had a record of 20 previous offences related to crime and drugs while his friend had a record of three and had been actively committing crimes since early 2023.

“The case is being investigated under Section 307 of the Penal Code, Section 8 of the Firearms Act 1971, and Section 8 of the Arms Act 1960. Efforts are being made to trace their remaining network of accomplices,” he said.

He added that the police subsequently managed to solve 20 cases of gang robbery and 10 of house break-ins in Tanjung Malim, Behrang, and Slim River.