SHAH ALAM, MALAYSIA: A man was shot dead by an unidentified gunman while he was having dinner at a crowded restaurant in Section 25 here yesterday. The man, whose identity was withheld by police, was rushed to the Selangor Medical Centre where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

The shooting occurred at 6.15pm when the victim, who is believed to be a forklift driver in his 20s, was having a meal with a friend.

A man wearing a full-face crash helmet walked up to them and exchanged a few words with the victim before pulling out a semi-automatic pistol and pumping five shots into him at point-blank range.

The killing shocked other patrons of the restaurant. While some could only sit in their chairs stunned, others ran for the exits.

Those who stayed and restaurant workers said the assailant coolly walked out of the restaurant after shooting the victim.

However, they were unable to tell police how the man made his escape.

Police are looking at all possible angles into the case as, even though he was wearing a crash helmet, it could not be determined whether the man had escaped on a motorcycle.

It was also learnt that the restaurant had closed-circuit television cameras installed. Police have taken the recordings to facilitate investigations.

Police were tightlipped over the incident and refused to provide information on the man or his background.

Selangor Criminal Investigation Department chief Senior Assistant Commissioner II Mazlan Mansor confirmed the incident when contacted but declined to elaborate.

Police recovered several spent casings at the scene. The casings will be compared with other cases to establish if the weapon had been used in other crimes.

A similar gangland style killing had taken place at the restaurant three months ago.