Two people have been killed following a raid on a jewellery shop in Italy, according to local media.
The owner reportedly opened fire after three armed thieves broke into his shop in the village of Grinzane Cavour, in the Piedmont region, on Wednesday.
Two died in the street, while a third suspect was wounded in the leg and later arrested.
The town’s mayor told Italian media that the business owner had been injured in a separate incident in 2015.
He was violently beaten and his wife and daughter tied up during the 2015 attack, while thieves made away with €300,000 (£260,000, $360,000) in watches and jewellery.
Mayor Gianfranco Garau, who was in an evening meeting in the nearby town hall at the time of Wednesday’s shooting, told Italian media that events remained unclear.
“I only know that an honest and good family has been targeted,” he was quoted as saying.
According to Italian news agency Ansa, at least five shots were fired. Emergency workers were unable to save two of the suspected thieves.
Newspaper Corriere della Sera reports that the shop owner’s wife and daughter were inside the shop when men armed with a gun and knife entered.
The third suspect has been questioned by carabinieri military police but has so far not been charged, the newspaper added.
The leader of Italy’s League party, Matteo Salvini, tweeted his support to the jeweller and his family, adding: “Defence is always legitimate.”
BBC