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Three police officers perished and no fewer than 15 additional individuals were hurt in what appears to be deliberate gas explosion at a country home in Italy's north.

Event Timeline

The blast occurred as law enforcement and fire personnel approached the house near the city of Verona to execute an removal notice for three siblings in their late 50s and mid-60s.

All three officers killed belonged to the Carabinieri force.

Investigation Developments

Two individuals were arrested at the site and a third person who fled after the incident was found soon after. Each of them have been taken to medical facility.

The detonation could be heard approximately 5 kilometers away and photographs from the scene displayed the structure left as a mass of wreckage.

“We are in a period of mourning,” said the Minister of the Interior Minister Piantedosi, who noted that attempts had been made to remove the three siblings in the earlier times.

Property Situation

The president of the Veneto area, President Zaia, explained the property was subject to an eviction order due to debts incurred by the siblings.

Conflict resolution experts had been dispatched to engage the siblings who had secured themselves into the property. When the police reached the location just after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), investigators believe one of the residents caused the detonation.

“When we entered the property, we faced an utterly insane act,” provincial police commander the police commander told news outlets.

A propane tank had been activated, and the detonation immediately struck our personnel,” he said.

Petrol bombs were also discovered at the site, the interior minister confirmed.

Injuries and Destruction

Injured individuals by the explosion consisted of 11 other members of the Carabinieri as well as three officers of Italy's state police and a fire services member.

According to the Verona prosecutor, the property was in a poor condition and had lacked electrical service.

The prosecutor believed the explosion had taken place on a floor above the entrance and informed journalists it was a “intentional and planned killing”. Moments before the explosion, he said personnel had “heard a whistle, likely the gas canisters being activated”.

Community Reaction

“We all knew the situation was dire,” nearby inhabitants informed reporters, mentioning 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 Minister Crosetto stood alongside other political leaders in paying tribute to the trio of personnel who had been killed in the service of their country.