Shots rang out in Huangpu early Monday morning as police from Guangzhou and Foshan teamed up to take down a gang of car thieves which has been in operation between Guangdong and Hunan since January 14.
Police in Guangzhou were tipped off by counterparts in Shenzhen at around 8pm Sunday night, writes Yangcheng Evening News today, that members of the car theft ring were heading north. Guangzhou police caught their trail as the four men entered the city at around 10pm and tailed it until 2am yesterday morning, when the suspects stopped outside a residential building on Zhongshan Dadao in Huangpu district.
Two men got out and got to work on a white SUV worth an estimated 200,000 RMB. They were able to break in quickly and were prepared to drive off with it when police cars moved in and surrounded the vehicle, ordering the men to step out. The suspects bolted and police began their pursuit.
One of the suspects, finding himself unable to outrun the cops chasing him on foot, pulled out a gun and started shooting at officers trailing approximately 100m behind. Police say they gave a warning which went unheeded, and then shot man in the leg. The other suspect was also subdued after being shot during the pursuit.
Police say the gunfire exchange approximately 1 minute and even posted a video they took of it through the Foshan Public Security Bureau’s official Sina Weibo account:
Meanwhile, the two suspects in the original vehicle, when surrounded by a separate group of officers, refused to step out and instead used the vehicle to rush at police. One officer was struck, suffering minor injuries. The driver was then able to ram his way through the barricade of police vehicles, sirens went on and a car chase began, with police firing at the suspects’ vehicle.
The two men managed to escape, but crashed their getaway car into a tree somewhere between Huangpu and Nanhai before fleeing on foot. Police notified hospitals in Foshan and detained the two men, and a go-to driver who joined later, while seeking treatment yesterday at around 4am.
All four of the original suspects, two from different parts of Guangdong and two from Henan province, are in police custody.
Tencent has published a collection of photos taken throughout the pursuit.
