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A trio of officers lost their lives and at least 15 people got wounded in what appears to be intentional detonation from gas at a rural property in northern Italy.

Event Timeline

The detonation took place as law enforcement and fire personnel went into the property near Verona to carry out an eviction order for a brother and sister trio aged in their 50s and 60s.

Each of the three deceased individuals served in the Italian military police.

Investigation Developments

A man and a woman were arrested at the scene and another man who escaped following the explosion was located not long after. Each of them have been transported to medical facility.

The explosion could be heard some 5km (3 miles) away and photographs from the location revealed the building left as a mass of wreckage.

“This is a time for grieving,” said the Interior Minister Minister Piantedosi, who noted that efforts had been made to evict the three family members in the previous occasions.

Property Situation

The president of the Veneto region, Luca Zaia, explained the farmhouse was under an removal notice due to debts incurred by the three owners.

Conflict resolution experts had been dispatched to talk with the siblings who had secured themselves into the property. When the officers came soon after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), officials believe one of the siblings triggered the blast.

“Upon entering the house, we were confronted with an act of absolute madness,” local police chief Claudio Papagno stated to news outlets.

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

Incendiary devices were also found at the property, the interior minister stated.

Impact Assessment

The wounded by the explosion comprised eleven more officers of the Carabinieri as well as three members of Italy's state police and a fire services member.

According to the local prosecutor, the farmhouse was in a derelict state and had was without power.

The official believed the explosion had happened on a level above the access point and informed reporters it was a “premeditated and voluntary homicide”. Moments before the explosion, he revealed members had “noticed a hissing sound, presumably the propane tanks being opened”.

Local Response

“We all knew the situation was dire,” nearby inhabitants informed Italian media, noting that the trio had in the past stated to “detonate the property” rather than leave the house.

“The incident exacted a ‘dreadful, extremely sad and dramatic price’.”

The Defense Minister Guido Crosetto joined other government officials in honoring the trio of personnel who had lost their lives in the service of their country.