A transgender person was shot dead in Karachi by unidentified culprits late on Tuesday, police said.

Karachi police said that gunmen opened fire on a group of transgender people, killing one of them, in an upscale neighbourhood in the metropolis.

Defence police station SHO Aurangzeb Khattak said the shooting took place overnight Wednesday. He said passengers in an SUV first harassed the group by throwing rotten eggs at them and then opened fire before fleeing.

Khattak said one bullet struck a person who went by the name Chanda in the head, killing him on the spot.

The police official said shell casings from a 9 mm pistol were found at the scene and that investigators were using surveillance camera footage to trace the SUV and arrest the culprits.