China police: suspected ‘bank killer’ shot dead

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CHONGQING: A Chinese armed robber accused of killing at least nine people since 2004 has been shot dead by police in Chongqing, state-run media say.

The man was also suspected to have wounded several others in robberies, Xinhua news agency said.

There are no further details on where and how he was found or shot.

On Monday, Xinhua reported that a “massive manhunt” was on for Zhou Kehua, 42, in the south-western city.

On Friday he reportedly killed a woman outside a bank and later a policeman.

Police were searching for him in a mountainous area where he was thought to be hiding, China Daily newspaper said on Monday.

The authorities had offered a 5.4m yuan ($850,000, £542,500) reward for his capture.

Police believed that he was responsible for a string of robberies in Chongqing and Changsha, and one earlier this year in Nanjing.

The authorities described him as “ruthless and highly dangerous” and said he had become adept at dodging police.

“We have not seen this kind of cold-blooded killer in years,” an unnamed police official was quoted by Xinhua as saying.

Mr Zhou was born in rural Chongqing and is believed to have worked in other cities in the last 25 years, including as a porter at a railway station.

He also served time in Yunnan province for trafficking firearms.