Two revolvers, six bullets and ten sharp weapons were recovered from the spot after the incident and a gang member was arrested later.

The dead were Milon Molla, 26, his brother Titu Molla, 17, of Mandar Bari, Kalam, 28, brother-in-law of Milon, Mohsin Sardar, 30, of Birmahol under Nalchhity upazila of Jhalakathi and two others aged between 25 and 30 years. Titu was a student of class ten of Chakhar Fazlul Huq School.

Officer-in-Charge of Banaripara Police Station Abdul Hye Sarkar, who was seriously hacked by the robbers, was admitted to Barisal Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital (SBMCH).

Armed robbers attacked the house of Zinnat Ali Daktar at Khalishakota village under Banaripara upazila at about 9:15pm on Wednesday night, district Police Superintendent Tawfiq Mahbub Chowdhury and injured Officer-in-Charge of Banaripara Police Station Abdul Hye Sarkar said.

Hearing the cries of the victims, locals rushed to the spot, chased the criminals out of the village, and informed the police.

Later police learnt that the robber gang took shelter in their hideout at the house of one of their gang member Milon Molla in Mollabari of Mandarkati village, about two kilometres from the previous spot, and was planning for robbery.

As police cordoned the house and tried to enter it, the gang hacked the OC severely and started to flee.

Police nabbed gang member Mohsin and started for the police station.

Trying to snatch him, Mohsin's cohorts engaged in a gunfight with the police and retreated after half an hour, leaving behind six of their fatally injured associates.

The six were rushed to Barisal SBMCH where they were declared dead and the bodies were sent to the morgue for autopsy.

Sub-inspectors Farid and Abdul Alim, assistant sub-inspector Sarwar, constables Bhaboranjan, Sadek and Nafiz, who received minor injuries, were admitted to Banaripara Upazila Health Complex.

Doctors suggested sending seriously injured OC Abdul Hye Sarkar to Dhaka immediately for better treatment.

Aminul Islam, deputy inspector general of police of Barisal range, told the journalists that police and local people were on vigil round the clock after several robberies in Banaripara, Babuganj and Uzirpur upazilas of Barisal district in recent days.

Milon Molla was a listed robber and wanted in many cases and the others were members of an inter-district gang, he added.

Local people caught a gang member Mamun Sardar of Birmahol under Nalchhity upazila while he was trying to flee at Banna village under Uzirpur upazila and handed him over to police on Thursday morning.

Abul Kalam Azad, OC of Uzirpur Police Station, said Mamun confessed that he was a tokai (street urchin) at Sadarghat of Dhaka and recently Mohsin lured him in joining the gang.

Under interrogation, Mamun told the names of several members of his gang including Mohsin, Ruhul Amin, Mizan and Royal, said the OC.

Claiming Milon and Titu Molla as innocent, their family members said they do not know why police raided their house and who attacked the law enforcers.

They, however, admitted that some unknown people took shelter at an abandoned room on the courtyard of their house at night.

Panic is still prevailing in the area.