TOKYO, May 26 (Xinhua) -- A man was severely wounded on Friday in a shooting incident in Japan's Tokyo area, local media reported.

The man, transported to the hospital unconscious, was wounded after being shot in the chest near a coffee shop in the western city of Machida of Tokyo Metropolis on Thursday evening, according to local media outlets.

Around 7:40 p.m. local time, a clerk at the shop called the police reporting the casualty after a handgun was fired by a man in suit.

On-site witnesses reported that two people fled from the scene in a car, whose whereabouts remain unclear.

The local police department is investigating the incident as a gang-related shooting incident, according to Japan's public broadcaster NHK.

The shooting took place in a downtown area near JR Machida Station crowded with shops and restaurants.