A still from CCTV footage of Inflation night club obtained by Fairfax Media. However, it also fails to substantiate allegations by management and staff that the man was not holding a weapon, or that he was attempting to pull his pants up when shot. The gun was a replica, part of a costume worn by the man dressed as Batman villain the Joker, while his 37-year-old partner came as Harley Quinn, popularised in the movie Suicide Squad. The victims of the shooting have been identified as Victorian bartender Dale Ewins, 35 and local government facility co-ordinator Zita Sukys, 37. The first shot was fired just after 3.54am on Saturday morning, but CCTV footage shows four police officers first entering the building at 2.52am. They can be seen talking calmly with security guards and patrons, after responding to reports that a patron at the Saints and Sinners Ball was armed with a gun.

A still from CCTV footage of Inflation night club. In the hour leading up to the shooting, police are also understood to have observed the man from a monitor in an office on the ground floor of the venue. They had been told by a security guard that the gun was a plastic replica. According to another security guard, police ignored a suggestion to send an undercover officer to the first floor to assess the scene. A still from CCTV footage at Inflation nightclub. About 3.53am, 10 armoured CIRT officers gathered outside the King Street entrance of the club.

A minute later, they stormed through the front door in single-file and and headed up a flight of stairs. A woman attended to by paramedics near King Street nightclub Inflation. Credit:7News As the highly trained officers reached the first floor they made a sharp left and shone a torch on the couple who were on a couch in a darkened corner. About six seconds later, the muzzle flash from the first shot can be seen in the video. The man is understood to have been shot in the lower back, while the woman received a leg wound. Both are now in a stable condition.

The Inflation nightclub on King Street. Credit:Chris Hopkins Inflation nightclub owner Martha Tsamis declined to discuss footage of the incident, other than to say: "If you have it, you'll see that it speaks for itself." Ms Tsamis has deep concerns about what she calls a "serious overreaction" by police. A still from CCTV footage showing police at Inflation night club. "I wonder if I could have done more on the night to protect my staff and patrons. All I want now is for this to be properly investigated and for the truth to come out. This has traumatised everyone associated with the business," she said.

On Saturday morning, as officers from Professional Standards Command began an investigation, Superintendent Lisa Hardeman explained the police response to a media scrum outside the club. "If you look at all the circumstances when a gun is aimed at you, and you ask somebody to drop the gun and that does not occur, you need to make a split-second decision to protect yourself," she said. Superintendent Hardeman said police had responded to "a number of phone calls in relation to the male with the firearm, including from the venue". Police Association secretary Wayne Gatt also defended the conduct of its members, who were "trained to take and act on threats at their highest potential". "The public expects a prompt and appropriate response by police to calls such as this, particularly in our heightened security environment," he said.

On Monday night, IBAC Commissioner Stephen O'Bryan, QC, said he had spoken to acting Chief Commissioner Shane Patton about this matter, before confirming an investigation. "IBAC has confirmed with Victoria Police that arrangements are in place to deal with any potential or perceived conflicts of interest in the initial police investigation, including as a result of recent civil action (unrelated to the latest incident) taken by the owner of the nightclub," an IBAC spokesman said. The shooting follows several years of acrimony between the club and police. Ms Tsamis is suing the state government over interviews given by the now boss of Victoria Police's Professional Standards, Assistant Commissioner Brett Guerin. The legal action relates to comments made by Mr Guerin to the Herald Sun and radio station 3AW that the club was a "honeypot" for drug dealers.

Ms Tsamis has also repeatedly accused police of harassing the venue and its patrons. In May 2013, undercover detectives entered the club when it was hosting a regular dance party called Cloud Nine. They filmed patrons with infrared cameras near the dance floor, which led to complaints over an alleged breach of privacy. When asked by Ms Tsamis what they were filming, the officer said there were at least two men involved in a drug deal near the toilets. When the owner asked why the men had not been arrested, the undercover officer replied: "Because we are the police and we decide what to do. We follow these things up." The officer's diary notes, which were provided to Ms Tsamis under freedom-of-information laws, said there was "clearly dealing up back corner".

A week after the filming, Mr Tsamis' venue was raided by more than 30 police with sniffer dogs. They were joined by a Channel Ten reporter, who was allegedly tipped off and filmed patrons as they were taken from the venue and searched on the street. No drugs were found and no arrests were made. Police claimed in documents filed with the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal that the investigation had been launched after a spate of GHB overdoses in the surrounding precinct. They also alleged that almost 60 "incidents" at the club over a 10-month period had demonstrated the venue contributed to a culture of drug use and risky alcohol consumption. In October 2013, the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation was asked by police to significantly reduce Inflation's trading hours and impose a 1am lock-out. The request was denied.