About 100 police officers were mobilized to suppress and arrest seven armed cock fighters who opened fire on their competitors over a conflict in the south-central province of Binh Thuan on Thursday.

>> Confronted by police chief, hostage taker surrenders One of these cock fighters, Nguyen Van Toan, 35, used four guns to shoot back at police officers who tried to arrest him, said Colonel Nguyen Van Minh, deputy director of the provincial police department. The seven cock fighters, aged from 22 to 36, hailing from the southern province of Binh Duong, arrived in Binh Thuan’s Ham Tan District on Thursday afternoon to stage a cockfighting session for money with some local residents. During the game, a conflict happened between the two groups and one member of the group from Binh Duong pulled out a gun and opened fire on members of the local group. Locals reported the incident to the police, who deployed a large number of officers to the scene to prevent the shooting. When police came, five of the seven got into a car and ran away while two others got on a bus to escape.

More police officers were mobilized to the commune, totaling about 100 members, Colonel Minh said. Local police arranged a force to pursue the car and stopped it later. They detained the five and found them not having any gun.  Meanwhile, another police team chased after the bus and stopped it in Tan Duc commune. The two cock fighters jumped off the bus and ran away in different directions but police could easily arrest one of them while the other pulled out a gun and shot back. The armed man then rushed into a local house and fired back. Policemen had to throw tear grenade into the house. The man then left that house for another one, continuing to shoot towards police officers who surrounded the area. After about an hour of fire exchanges, a group of police officers managed to get close and seized him without any casualties reported, Colonel Minh said. The police are hunting down another member of the gang.

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