A drug peddler was killed in a “gunfight” between two feuding gangs of illegal traders in Charghat upazila's Raotha village early yesterday.

The dead was identified as Fazlul Haq, 48, a leader of one of the gangs, said Abdur Razzak, additional superintendent of Rajshahi police.

He added the clash ensued over establishing supremacy over the drug trade in the area but could not immediately say who the other gangs' members were.

“The police have launched an investigation into the incident,” he told The Daily Star over phone.

The police official in an email said on information, law enforcers reached the spot at a mango orchard at 1:40am and fired 10 shots to tackle the situation.

The two gangs attacked the law enforcers, leaving four policemen, including the OC of Charghat police, injured, he added.

At one stage, the criminals escaped the scene and police found Fazlul lying injured on the ground.

He was taken to Charghat Health Complex where he was declared dead. His body was sent to Rajshahi Medical College morgue for autopsy.

Fazlul was accused in at least 10 drug-related cases, police said.

The police claimed to have recovered a pistol, a magazine with a bullet and 55 bottles of smuggled Indian Phensidyl from the spot. They also filed three cases in this regard.