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A trio of officers lost their lives and more than a dozen people got wounded in a seemingly intentional detonation from gas at a farmhouse in Italy's north.

Event Timeline

The explosion was triggered as law enforcement and fire personnel entered the residence near the city of Verona to carry out an eviction order for a brother and sister trio who were older adults.

The three officers killed were members of the Carabinieri force.

Legal Proceedings

One male and one female got detained at the scene and one more individual who escaped following the blast was found shortly later. The trio have been transported to the hospital.

The detonation could be audible some 5km (3 miles) away and footage from the area displayed the structure turned into a heap of debris.

“This moment calls for sorrow,” commented the Interior Minister the Interior Minister, who added that attempts had been made to remove the three siblings in the earlier times.

Financial Context

The head of the region of Veneto, the regional head, explained the property was facing an eviction order due to financial obligations accumulated by the three owners.

Mediators had been sent to speak to the siblings who had secured themselves into the home. When the Carabinieri arrived just after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), officials suspect one of the residents triggered the blast.

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

A propane tank had been set off, and the detonation precisely impacted our personnel,” he explained.

Petrol bombs were also found at the residence, the minister said.

Casualties and Damage

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

Based on information from the prosecuting attorney, the building was in a derelict state and had was without power.

He was convinced the explosion had taken place on a story above the access point and stated to journalists it was a “deliberate and pre-planned murder”. Moments before the incident, he revealed members had “noticed a hissing sound, probably the propane tanks being turned on”.

Local Response

“We all knew the situation was dire,” neighbors informed Italian media, adding that the trio had in the past stated to “cause an explosion” rather than be evicted.

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

Minister of Defence Guido Crosetto stood alongside other elected representatives in honoring the three men who had died in the service of their country.