The assault was carried out late on Thursday, when the militants attacked the village of Benoi-Vedeno in the Nozhai-Yurt district of Chechnya. The gang was led by Usman Muntsigov, who is on the federal wanted list, the source said.
The militants burnt down five houses in the village. All of those killed were members of the Yasayev family, the source said.
He said the gunmen took several civilians hostage, including a former deputy head of the Benoi-Vedeno administration. The search for the attackers is ongoing.
Sporadic terrorist attacks and militant clashes remain common in Russia's North Caucasus republics, although the active phase of the Kremlin campaign to fight militants and terrorists in Chechnya is officially over. Violence often spills over into neighboring republics, in particular Ingushetia and Daghestan.
