A Malaysian man who was shot several times at a riverbank on the northern Malaysian-Thai border, managed to swim to safety to the Malaysian side of the river despite his serious injuries, a news report said Monday, dpa reported.
Mohamad Darus Mohamad Daud, 37, who suffered gunshot wounds to his abdomen, buttocks, left wrist and right leg, was found by villagers in the northern Malaysian Terengganu state and rushed to a nearby hospital.
The victim was believed to have been approached by three men in southern Thailand on Sunday and taken away in their vehicle to a riverbank and assaulted, state police chief Abdul Rahim Hanafi was quoted as saying by the Star daily.
"During the scuffle, the victim fell into the river and was shot at," he said.
Abdul Rahim added that initial investigations revealed that the victim could have failed to pay a debt to the attackers which may have led to the shooting.