KUALA LUMPUR, May 22 -- Johor police have shot dead a male Indonesian national suspected of being actively involved in a series of robberies.

The incident took place at around 3.45am today in an oil palm plantation near Kampung Palembang in Kluang during a routine crime prevention patrol.

In a statement, Johor police chief Commissioner Datuk M. Kumar said the suspect was behaving suspiciously and was riding a motorcycle without a registration plate when officers began trailing him.

The man reportedly turned aggressive and swung a machete at the officers.

"Officers had been following the suspect closely and managed to intercept him along an unpaved road leading to the plantation area.

"As they approached the motorcycle to conduct a ch...