Russian police shot dead three people from the Caucasus region of Central Asia, who they said had robbed and killed Chinese nationals in Vladivostok this month, the public security authority of Heilongjiang Province said Wednesday.

The province borders Russia.

Five masked gangsters broke into an apartment rented by seven Chinese in Vladivostok, Russia, at about 5 a.m. on March 6 and robbed them. The Chinese fought back and the gang opened fire, the Heilongjiang Provincial Public Security Department said, citing a report from China's Consulate General in Khabarovsk, which administers Vladivostok.

Three injured Chinese were hospitalized, with one later dying. The other two remain under observation.

All the Chinese were natives of Mudanjiang City in Heilongjiang.

Russian police found the gang in a residential building on March 14 and shot three dead after negotiations failed.

The local authorities in Vladivostok, bordering Heilongjiang, were working on measures to protect foreigners.

(Xinhua News Agency March 19, 2009)