Two men, one of whom was suspected of trafficking drugs in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, and a woman fought with police in a gunfight in a blazing Chengdu apartment on Wednesday in a scene described as resembling "a Hollywood blockbuster".

The suspected drug trafficker, whose name and age were not released, died after jumping from the apartment to avoid capture. Two suspects were arrested.

Chengdu police denied local media reports that a fourth suspect had escaped, according to China News Service.

The suspects were in a 10th-floor apartment in Chengdu, Sichuan province, on Wednesday morning.

Police did not reveal why the suspected drug trafficker was in Chengdu.

They are currently investigating the relationship between him and the others, according to the Chengdu Public Security Bureau.

Around 11 am, an anti-drug unit from the public security bureau and police officers from Baotou, Inner Mongolia, approached the front door of the apartment.

According to police, the main suspect immediately began firing from inside, injuring one officer in the right shoulder.

Wang Xiao, a policeman with the detachment, said the injured officer was rushed to Chengdu Army General Hospital and the wound was not life-threatening.

As the gunfire continued, police said, the main suspect moved to another room. After evacuating residents, police ordered him to surrender, but he continued again.

The standoff lasted for about three hours until more officers from the public security bureau arrived and broke down the front door.

The apartment was on fire, reportedly set ablaze by the other suspects, who remained inside. "They resisted, firing their guns. They were burning the apartment. Smoke was coming out the window," Wang said.

Police fired tear gas into the apartment, authorities said. They captured two people inside.

Chengdu police said on their micro blog the suspected drug trafficker leapt from the apartment window at 1:53 pm.

Wang said, "To avoid capture, he jumped to the ground from the 10th-floor window".

The man was found dead.

"It was really like a Hollywood blockbuster," said the apartment building's security guard, named Zhong.

At around 2:50 pm, police emerged from the building with two captured suspects.

"They were a man in a white T-shirt and a woman in a pink dress," Zhong said.

huangzhiling@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily USA 08/01/2013 page6)