Dhaka, Jan 25 (IANS) A 40-year-old Bangladeshi shopkeeper was shot dead by unidentified assailants in South Africa, the media reported on Friday.

The incident took place on Wednesday in Rustenburg, North-West province. Mohin Uddin's body was found inside a fridge the following day, reports bdnews24.

"The criminals came to rob Mohin's shop at night. They shot him and dumped his body in a fridge... He was being harassed for money by a gang of extortionists for a while," Humayun Kabir, the victim's brother, said on Friday.

Kabir said that his brother migrated to South Africa some three years ago "in search of a better livelihood".

According to the South African government, there are over two million foreign nationals currently residing in the country, of which around 95,000 are Bangladeshis.

--IANS ksk/mr