Troops, police search for China's 'most wanted' robber

Hong Kong (CNN) -- A huge manhunt involving soldiers and police is underway in China for an elusive armed robber who is thought to be behind a string of murders dating back to 2004.

The search for 42-year-old Zhou Kehua -- one of the country's most wanted criminals -- is focused on the southwestern city of Chongqing, China's biggest metropolis, after a woman was shot dead and two others injured on Friday morning outside a bank during an attempted robbery, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Later that day, local police reported that a railway policeman was killed while in pursuit of a man believed to be Zhou -- his tenth victim in eight years following a series of robberies in Chongqing, Nanjing and Changsha.

All his victims were shot in the head, according to media reports, while police say he targeted people withdrawing money from banks.

Chongqing authorities recalled officers on vacation as they launched a full-scale search for the fugitive in mountainous areas around the city, Xinhua said. Police and military units from Hunan and Jiangsu provinces were also mobilized.