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Three police officers lost their lives and more than a dozen additional individuals sustained injuries in what appears to be deliberate gas explosion at a rural property in the northern part of Italy.

How It Happened

The blast occurred as officers and emergency crews went into the residence in the vicinity of Verona to execute an court-ordered eviction for two brothers and a sister in their late 50s and mid-60s.

The three victims who died were members of the Carabinieri force.

Investigation Developments

One male and one female were taken into custody at the site and a third person who escaped subsequent to the explosion was located shortly later. Each of them have been transported to hospital.

The explosion could be audible some 5km (3 miles) away and images from the scene displayed the property reduced to a heap of debris.

“This is a time for grieving,” commented the Interior Minister the Interior Minister, who added that previous tries had been made to evict the three family members in the earlier times.

Background and Motive

The leader of the Veneto area, President Zaia, explained the residence was under an eviction order due to financial obligations accumulated by the siblings.

Negotiators had been assigned to engage the family members who had barricaded themselves into the house. When the Carabinieri reached the location soon after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), officials suspect a family member triggered the explosion.

“As we went inside, we encountered a completely deranged action,” regional commander Commander Papagno informed news outlets.

“A gas cylinder had been activated, and the detonation precisely impacted our personnel,” he said.

Petrol bombs were also discovered at the property, the minister said.

Injuries and Destruction

Those injured by the explosion comprised eleven more officers of the Carabinieri as well as a trio of personnel of the state police and a firefighter.

Based on information from the prosecuting attorney, the farmhouse was in a derelict state and had was without power.

The prosecutor thought the blast had taken place on a level above the doorway and informed the press it was a “deliberate and pre-planned murder”. Shortly before the incident, he mentioned personnel had “heard a whistle, likely the gas canisters being turned on”.

Local Response

“Everyone was aware the circumstances were severe,” local residents informed Italian media, adding that the trio had in the past stated to “cause an explosion” rather than leave the house.

“The explosion had left a ‘terrible, very painful and dramatic toll’.”

Defence Minister Minister Crosetto joined other elected representatives in paying tribute to the trio of personnel who had lost their lives in the line of duty.