A garment worker was shot dead by unidentified assailants in Ashulia's Jamgora area early yesterday.

Police said Russel Khan, 27, of Madaripur, was shot while he and several others were apparently guarding their neighborhood against muggers in the dead of the night.

One of them was mugged in the area a few days ago, said Javed Masud, inspector of Ashulia Police Station.

Quoting witnesses, he said around 1:00am yesterday Russel and about 10 young men asked two men walking down the street to stop.

As the two men started running away the vigilantes chased them, he said.

At one stage, the two men started shooting at them. Russel was shot and he died shortly after being taken to Enam Medical College Hospital.

Police are trying to find the suspects, he added.

Russel's body was sent to Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College morgue for autopsy, he added.

Alamin Hossen, who was with Russel during the incident, said the armed men fired several shots at them.