A suspected robber was shot in the thigh when fleeing police in Seremban today and apprehended.

The incident occurred around 10.30am, about an hour after a housewife was robbed of two gold necklaces worth RM3,200 at Taman Impian in Kuala Pilah.

A witness described to police the car that the three men who robbed the women escaped in, Negeri Sembilan Criminal Investigation Department chief ACP Hamdan Majid said.

"A police patrol spotted the car in Jalan Campbell and ordered the occupants to stop, but they sped off past the police headquarters building," he told reporters in Seremban.

The policemen giving chase shot at a tyre and punctured it, causing the car to crash into the Masjid Jamek gate and stop. The three men got out and ran in three different directions, Hamdan said.

One of the suspects tried to grab the motorcycle of a policeman who happened to be on duty in the area.

"Seeing a colleague in danger, one of the men in the patrol car shot the suspect in the right thigh," Hamdan said.

"Although injured, the suspect continued to flee. He ran for about 100 metres before the policemen caught him."

The suspect was sent to the Tuanku Jaafar Hospital where his condition was reported to be stable.

Hamdan said the 40-year-old suspect from Semenyih in Selangor had a criminal record.

He was detained at the Simpang Renggam rehabilitation centre in Johor from 2000 to 2006 and was restricted to Jeli in Kelantan from 2006 to 2008.

Police found in the abandoned car three parangs and an axe, among others.

Hamdan said the car had a false registration number and was reported stolen in Klang on June 12.

Police are now hunting down the other two suspects, he said.

- Bernama