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Three police officers perished and no fewer than 15 people sustained injuries in a seemingly deliberate blast caused by gas at a country home in Italy's north.

Event Timeline

The detonation was triggered as police and firefighters went into the residence close to the Verona region to enforce an court-ordered eviction for three siblings aged in their 50s and 60s.

Each of the three victims who died belonged to the Italian military police.

Legal Proceedings

One male and one female were arrested at the location and one more individual who escaped following the incident was found not long after. All three have been admitted to the hospital.

The detonation could be noticed approximately 5 kilometers away and footage from the area showed the structure left as a pile of rubble.

“This is a time for grieving,” stated Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi, who mentioned that previous tries had been made to remove the three family members in the earlier times.

Background and Motive

The head of the region of Veneto, Luca Zaia, said the farmhouse was under an eviction order due to unpaid amounts incurred by the three owners.

Negotiators had been dispatched to speak to the family members who had barricaded themselves into the property. When the officers came shortly after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), investigators suspect one of the siblings set off the explosion.

“When we entered the property, we faced an utterly insane act,” provincial police commander the police commander stated to the media.

“A gas cylinder had been activated, and the blast directly hit our officers,” he added.

Incendiary devices were also found at the property, the Interior Minister confirmed.

Casualties and Damage

Injured individuals by the incident included 11 other members of the police force as well as a trio of personnel of the state police and a firefighter.

As stated by the Verona prosecutor, the farmhouse was in a dilapidated shape and had no electricity.

The prosecutor was convinced the detonation had occurred on a story above the entrance and informed the press it was a “deliberate and pre-planned murder”. Just prior to the explosion, he said officers had “detected a whistling noise, presumably the gas canisters being activated”.

Neighbor Statements

“All of us understood the scenario was critical,” nearby inhabitants told reporters, noting that the trio had in the past stated to “cause an explosion” rather than be evicted.

“The blast resulted in a ‘horrific, deeply distressing and tragic cost’.”

Minister of Defence the Defence Minister stood alongside other elected representatives in paying tribute to the three officers who had died in the service of their country.