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A trio of officers lost their lives and no fewer than 15 additional individuals were hurt in what appears to be intentional detonation from gas at a farmhouse in northern Italy.

How It Happened

The blast occurred as police and firefighters went into the property in the vicinity of the Verona region to execute an removal notice for a brother and sister trio who were older adults.

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

Legal Proceedings

A man and a woman were taken into custody at the location and another man who ran away after the incident was found not long after. Each of them have been admitted to hospital.

The blast could be noticed some 5km (3 miles) away and footage from the location revealed the property reduced to a pile of rubble.

“This is a time for grieving,” said the Interior Minister the Interior Minister, who mentioned that attempts had been made to remove the three siblings in the past.

Background and Motive

The head of the region of Veneto, Luca Zaia, stated the residence was subject to an court order due to debts accumulated by the property owners.

Conflict resolution experts had been assigned to engage the family members who had locked themselves into the house. When the police reached the location just after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), authorities think a family member set off the detonation.

“As we went inside, we encountered a completely deranged action,” provincial police commander Commander Papagno stated to news outlets.

“A gas cylinder had been set off, and the blast immediately struck our members,” he explained.

Incendiary devices were also found at the residence, the Interior Minister confirmed.

Injuries and Destruction

Those injured by the incident included 11 other members of the military police as well as three officers of the state police and a emergency responder.

According to the local prosecutor, the property was in a dilapidated shape and had was without power.

The prosecutor was convinced the detonation had taken place on a level above the entrance and told reporters it was a “deliberate and pre-planned murder”. Shortly before the explosion, he revealed personnel had “noticed a hissing sound, likely the gas canisters being activated”.

Community Reaction

“We all knew the situation was dire,” nearby inhabitants informed local news, mentioning that the family members had in the past stated to “blow themselves up” rather than leave the house.

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

Defence Minister Minister Crosetto stood alongside other elected representatives in commemorating the three officers who had lost their lives in the service of their country.