Srilanka, April 13 -- Police opened fire at a car that was fleeing after being hijacked in Kotahena last night.

They said a man had parked his car with the engine running on Wasala Road, Kotahena, and briefly stepped into a restaurant to buy food, leaving his pregnant wife and mother inside the vehicle.

A suspect had then got into the car and drove off with the two women still inside.

Officers from the Mattakkuliya Police Station, who were in the area on an unrelated investigation, were alerted to the incident and gave chase in a cab.

Despite being ordered to stop, the suspect continued to flee, prompting police to fire two shots from a duty pistol.

The car was eventually stopped near the Bloemendhal railway line.

Police said the...