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Three police officers lost their lives and no fewer than 15 additional individuals were hurt in a seemingly intentional blast caused by gas at a country home in northern Italy.

Sequence of Events

The blast took place as police and firefighters went into the property near Verona to execute an removal notice for two brothers and a sister aged in their 50s and 60s.

All three officers killed were members of the Carabinieri military police.

Arrests and Aftermath

Two individuals got detained at the site and a third person who ran away subsequent to the explosion was found soon after. The trio have been transported to the hospital.

The blast could be heard some 5km (3 miles) away and photographs from the area displayed the property reduced to a heap of debris.

“We are in a period of mourning,” stated the Minister of the Interior Matteo Piantedosi, who added that attempts had been made to remove the brother and sister trio in the past.

Property Situation

The leader of the region of Veneto, President Zaia, said the residence was under an court order due to debts incurred by the property owners.

Mediators had been dispatched to speak to the family members who had locked themselves into the home. When the officers arrived just after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), investigators suspect a family member caused the explosion.

“When we entered the property, we faced an utterly insane act,” provincial police commander Commander Papagno told reporters.

A gas canister had been set off, and the explosion directly hit our members,” he explained.

Petrol bombs were also found at the residence, the interior minister stated.

Casualties and Damage

Injured individuals by the explosion included eleven more officers of the military police as well as three members of national police and a fire services member.

According to the local prosecutor, the building was in a derelict state and had no electricity.

The official was convinced the blast had occurred on a floor above the access point and told reporters it was a “deliberate and pre-planned murder”. Moments before the explosion, he mentioned members had “detected a whistling noise, likely the gas canisters being opened”.

Local Response

“All of us understood the scenario was critical,” neighbors stated to Italian media, mentioning that the family members had previously threatened to “cause an explosion” rather than be evicted.

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

The Defense Minister Guido Crosetto stood alongside other political leaders in paying tribute to the three men who had lost their lives in the service of their country.