Police investigating the killing of two men during an armed robbery at a jewellery store in a Brabant village said on Sunday evening they have not worked out exactly what happened during the incident or if the men were killed in self-defence.

The two died at the Goldies store in the village of Deurne early on Friday evening. One was a 20-year-old man from Eindhoven who had a criminal record. The other has not yet been formally identified.

Nos television said on Sunday security camera footage shows the jeweller’s wife shooting a gun. The pictures show how she fired the gun at the robbers, sources told the broadcaster. The surveillance camera takes separate photos rather than film.

Permit

The sources also said the pictures show the jeweller himself with a gun in his hand. It is not clear if he fired or if the gun came from one of the robbers. Nor is it clear who fired the fatal shots or if the couple had a permit to own a gun.

The public prosecution department said a day after the incident the couple appear to have acted out of self-defence but backtracked on Sunday, saying further investigation is need to decide if the couple should face legal action.

Surprise

MPs from D66 and CDA had said earlier they were surprised the conclusion was reached so quickly, as has at least one senior lawyer.

And the Dutch association of ex-prisoners said it will go to court if the jeweller’s wife is not prosecuted for the shooting.

The association referred to an incident in 2012 when junior justice minister Fred Teeven said the death of a burglar was a risk of the job. The Deurne incident shows the consequences of this sort of statement, it said.