🔗 Share this article

Three members of law enforcement perished and at least 15 additional individuals sustained injuries in a seemingly deliberate blast caused by gas at a farmhouse in northern Italy.

How It Happened

The explosion occurred as police and firefighters went into the residence in the vicinity of the city of Verona to carry out an eviction order for a brother and sister trio in their late 50s and mid-60s.

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

Investigation Developments

Two individuals were taken into custody at the location and another man who ran away subsequent to the incident was located shortly later. All three have been admitted to the hospital.

The blast could be heard approximately 5 kilometers away and footage from the area showed the building left as a pile of rubble.

“We are in a period of mourning,” stated the Interior Minister the Interior Minister, who added that attempts had been made to evict the brother and sister trio in the previous occasions.

Background and Motive

The head of the Veneto region, Luca Zaia, stated the property was under an removal notice due to financial obligations accumulated by the siblings.

Negotiators had been assigned to engage the family members who had barricaded themselves into the property. When the officers reached the location just after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), officials think one of the residents set off the blast.

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

A gas canister had been activated, and the detonation directly hit our personnel,” he added.

Petrol bombs were also located at the residence, the minister confirmed.

Injuries and Destruction

Those injured by the blast consisted of eleven more officers of the police force as well as a trio of personnel of Italy's state police and a firefighter.

According to the local prosecutor, the building was in a dilapidated shape and had no electricity.

The prosecutor believed the blast had taken place on a floor above the doorway and told journalists it was a “deliberate and pre-planned murder”. Shortly before the blast, he mentioned personnel had “heard a whistle, likely the gas canisters being turned on”.

Local Response

“We all knew the situation was dire,” neighbors stated to local news, mentioning that the trio had previously threatened to “detonate the property” rather than vacate the property.

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

Defence Minister the Defence Minister joined other government officials in honoring the three officers who had lost their lives in the service of their country.