A South Korean national has died in a gunfight with police in Cebu, the Philippines, while allegedly robbing a house with two other Korean companions, local news outlets reported Thursday.
The 47-year-old deceased, surnamed Choi, was robbing a house in a luxury neighborhood in Cebu at around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday (local time), with two other South Korean nationals, both surnamed Kim, according to the media reports.
The suspects reportedly threatened the owner of the house, who is also a South Korean national, with weapons and extorted jewelry worth 25 million pesos ($443,235) and 200,000 pesos of cash.
Before their escape, local police officers arrived at the scene, and the two sides got into a gunfight, resulting in Choi's death and severely injuring one police officer.
Philippine police detained the two other suspects and were looking into the details of the case, the reports said.
Seoul's foreign ministry said an official at the South Korean consulate general there visited the police station Wednesday to consult with the case.
"Right after being informed of the case, the diplomatic mission has been calling for a swift and fair investigation into the case, while providing necessary consular assistance for the victim," a ministry official said.
