🔗 Share this article

Three police officers were killed and more than a dozen additional individuals got wounded in what appears to be premeditated detonation from gas at a rural property in Italy's north.

Sequence of Events

The detonation took place as law enforcement and fire personnel entered the residence near the city of Verona to carry out an removal notice for a brother and sister trio aged in their 50s and 60s.

All three victims who died belonged to the Carabinieri force.

Arrests and Aftermath

Two individuals were arrested at the location and one more individual who fled after the incident was found not long after. The trio have been admitted to medical facility.

The blast could be noticed approximately 5 kilometers away and footage from the area showed the building turned into a heap of debris.

“We are in a period of mourning,” commented the Interior Minister Minister Piantedosi, who added that efforts had been made to remove the three siblings in the previous occasions.

Property Situation

The president of the region of Veneto, President Zaia, stated the property was facing an removal notice due to unpaid amounts incurred by the three owners.

Mediators had been dispatched to speak to the family members who had barricaded themselves into the property. When the Carabinieri reached the location soon after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), investigators suspect one of the siblings triggered the explosion.

“Upon entering the house, we were confronted with an act of absolute madness,” provincial police commander the police commander stated to the media.

“A gas cylinder had been activated, and the blast directly hit our officers,” he said.

Molotov cocktails were also located at the site, the minister said.

Injuries and Destruction

Injured individuals by the incident consisted of 11 other members of the military police as well as three officers of Italy's state police and a emergency responder.

According to the Verona prosecutor, the building was in a dilapidated shape and had lacked electrical service.

The official thought the explosion had taken place on a level above the access point and told the press it was a “deliberate and pre-planned murder”. Just prior to the blast, he mentioned members had “heard a whistle, likely the gas cylinders being turned on”.

Neighbor Statements

“All of us understood the scenario was critical,” local residents informed Italian media, adding that the trio had previously threatened to “blow themselves up” rather than vacate the property.

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

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