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Three members of law enforcement perished and at least 15 additional individuals were hurt in a seemingly deliberate gas explosion at a rural property in Italy's north.

Event Timeline

The explosion took place as police and firefighters entered the residence in the vicinity of the city of Verona to execute an eviction order for three siblings who were older adults.

All three deceased individuals were members of the Carabinieri military police.

Investigation Developments

Two individuals were taken into custody at the site and a third person who fled after the explosion was found not long after. All three have been transported to medical facility.

The blast could be noticed approximately 5 kilometers away and images from the location displayed the building left as a heap of debris.

“This is a time for grieving,” commented the Minister of the Interior the Interior Minister, who added that previous tries had been made to displace the three siblings in the previous occasions.

Background and Motive

The head of the Veneto region, the regional head, said the farmhouse was subject to an court order due to unpaid amounts incurred by the siblings.

Negotiators had been assigned to engage the family members who had locked themselves into the house. When the Carabinieri arrived shortly after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), officials suspect a family member set off the blast.

“Upon entering the house, we were confronted with an act of absolute madness,” regional commander Claudio Papagno told reporters.

“A gas cylinder had been set off, and the detonation precisely impacted our members,” he explained.

Incendiary devices were also found at the residence, the interior minister said.

Casualties and Damage

Those injured by the blast consisted of 11 other members of the police force as well as a trio of personnel of the state police and a emergency responder.

Based on information from the Verona prosecutor, the property was in a poor condition and had was without power.

He was convinced the explosion had taken place on a level above the doorway and stated to the press it was a “deliberate and pre-planned murder”. Shortly before the incident, he revealed members had “noticed a hissing sound, presumably the gas canisters being turned on”.

Local Response

“We all knew the situation was dire,” local residents told reporters, mentioning that the family members had previously threatened to “detonate the property” rather than leave the house.

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

Minister of Defence Minister Crosetto stood alongside other political leaders in commemorating the three officers who had lost their lives in the performance of their duties.