PETALING JAYA, MALAYSIA - The African black money scam took a violent twist yesterday when a suspect was shot dead while attempting to attack policemen with a parang.

The dead suspect, believed to be a Liberian, was wanted along with two of his accomplices for a string of black money scams in Puchong.

Police had been on the lookout for the trio after receiving at least five reports in the past six months from several businessmen who were duped.

Yesterday, at noon, police were informed that the two men and a woman were spotted outside a workshop in Kampung Baru Puchong.

A team of detectives from the Subang Jaya CID division confronted them when one of the men pulled out a parang and tried to attack the policemen.
Police fired a warning shot but the African lunged at the policemen. The police then fired at the two male suspects, hitting one in the chest and the other in his buttocks.

The woman jumped into a monsoon drain but was nabbed by the detectives.

Selangor chief police officer Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar said a briefcase was found at the scene containing foreign currency used by the three suspects, all in their 30s, to con their victims.

"At least five reports had been lodged against the three suspects. We have been looking for them for several months now," he said.

It is learnt that the suspects preyed on victims in the Puchong area, often offering US$50,000 in return for RM16,000. Police urged members of the public to come forward and assist investigations.

"The identities of the three suspects have yet to be ascertained as police are searching their rented unit in Puchong," said Khalid, adding that police also seized a Toyota Vios which was used by the suspects.

The injured suspect was sent to the Serdang Hospital while the woman was detained for investigations.

Police are also probing if the three suspects had any accomplices.

Meanwhile, in an unrelated case, two Indonesians attempted to rob a goldsmith here in Serdang yesterday but left empty-handed.

The two suspects, armed with axes and wearing full-faced motorcycle helmets, walked into the goldsmith about 2pm and smashed the display cases. However, they turned and fled when the owner raised the alarm.