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Three police officers were killed and more than a dozen people were hurt in a seemingly premeditated blast caused by gas at a rural property in northern Italy.

Event Timeline

The blast occurred as law enforcement and fire personnel entered the residence close to the Verona region to execute an removal notice for two brothers and a sister who were older adults.

Each of the three victims who died served in the Carabinieri force.

Arrests and Aftermath

A man and a woman were taken into custody at the site and one more individual who ran away following the incident was apprehended shortly later. All three have been transported to hospital.

The blast could be noticed as far as 3 miles distant and footage from the location revealed the building left as a mass of wreckage.

“This moment calls for sorrow,” stated Interior Minister the Interior Minister, who added that attempts had been made to evict the three family members in the past.

Property Situation

The president of the region of Veneto, the regional head, stated the farmhouse was subject to an eviction order due to debts accrued by the three owners.

Mediators had been sent to talk with the brothers and sister who had barricaded themselves into the property. When the Carabinieri reached the location shortly after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), investigators think one of the residents triggered the explosion.

“When we entered the property, we faced an utterly insane act,” regional commander Commander Papagno stated to reporters.

“A gas cylinder had been set off, and the detonation directly hit our members,” he said.

Incendiary devices were also located at the property, the interior minister stated.

Injuries and Destruction

The wounded by the explosion comprised 11 other members of the police force as well as a trio of personnel of national police and a firefighter.

Based on information from the local prosecutor, the property was in a poor condition and had no electricity.

The official thought the blast had happened on a story above the entrance and informed the press it was a “intentional and planned killing”. Shortly before the incident, he revealed officers had “noticed a hissing sound, likely the propane tanks being opened”.

Local Response

“Everyone was aware the circumstances were severe,” nearby inhabitants informed local news, mentioning that the family members had in the past stated to “detonate the property” rather than leave the house.

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

The Defense Minister Guido Crosetto joined other elected representatives in honoring the three men who had lost their lives in the line of duty.