🔗 Share this article

Three police officers lost their lives and no fewer than 15 others were hurt in an apparently intentional blast caused by gas at a rural property in Italy's north.

How It Happened

The blast was triggered as law enforcement and fire personnel went into the property near the Verona region to enforce an eviction order for a brother and sister trio aged in their 50s and 60s.

The three officers killed served in the Carabinieri force.

Legal Proceedings

One male and one female were arrested at the scene and a third person who fled following the blast was apprehended soon after. All three have been taken to the hospital.

The blast could be heard as far as 3 miles distant and photographs from the location revealed the structure reduced to a mass of wreckage.

“We are in a period of mourning,” said Interior Minister the Interior Minister, who noted that attempts had been made to displace the brother and sister trio in the past.

Background and Motive

The leader of the region of Veneto, the regional head, said the property was facing an removal notice due to debts accumulated by the three owners.

Negotiators had been dispatched to engage the family members who had locked themselves into the home. When the officers reached the location soon after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), investigators believe a family member set off the explosion.

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

“A gas cylinder had been activated, and the explosion immediately struck our members,” he explained.

Molotov cocktails were also located at the residence, the Interior Minister confirmed.

Casualties and Damage

Injured individuals by the blast consisted of eleven more officers of the police force as well as three members of Italy's state police and a fire services member.

Based on information from the prosecuting attorney, the farmhouse was in a dilapidated shape and had no electricity.

He thought the detonation had taken place on a level above the access point and informed reporters it was a “premeditated and voluntary homicide”. Shortly before the incident, he said members had “detected a whistling noise, likely the gas cylinders being opened”.

Community Reaction

“Everyone was aware the circumstances were severe,” local residents stated to Italian media, noting that the three had earlier warned to “blow themselves up” rather than leave the house.

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

Defence Minister Minister Crosetto united with other government officials in honoring the trio of personnel who had been killed in the performance of their duties.