A jeweller shot two people who broke into his shop in a town in northern Italy, while a third person escaped with injuries.
Police on Thursday questioned the man who had been admitted to hospital during the night with gunshot wounds, ANSA news agency reported.
The attempted break-in occurred on Wednesday in the small town of Grinzane Cavour in Piedmont, local media reported.
The jeweller was tied up and injured during an earlier robbery at the same shop, in 2015, according to the ANSA report.
Several months later, the thieves were detained with the stolen goods.
This time, the jeweller used his own weapon against the suspects, according to Corriere della Sera newspaper.
He was alerted to the break-in by his wife and daughter, who called for help.
He came to their aid from another part of the shop, and fired several shots, fatally injuring two of the suspected thieves.
One man was left lying in the middle of the street, according to the ANSA report.
The police were now investigating to determine the exact course of events.
Meanwhile Matteo Salvini, head of the far-right Lega party, described the case as “self defence’’ in a Facebook post.