Police closed all exit roads from the Dagestani capital of Makhachkala on Thursday as they searched for the killers of the head of the republic's press service.
“We are using all our resources to close down the city,” Dagestani Interior Minister Abdulrashid Magomedov said.
Press service chief Garun Kurbanov was shot dead in Makhachkala early on Thursday, a police spokesman said.
"Unidentified gunmen opened fire on Kurbanov's car," the spokesman said.
Kurbanov's driver was also killed in the attack.
Another source said the official was shot dead while heading to his car.
Militant attacks are frequent in Russia's North Caucasus, which also included Chechnya and Ingushetia.
