🔗 Share this article

Three police officers were killed and more than a dozen people got wounded in a seemingly deliberate gas explosion at a rural property in northern Italy.

Event Timeline

The detonation took place as officers and emergency crews entered the house in the vicinity of the city of Verona to execute an eviction order for three siblings who were older adults.

The three officers killed belonged to the Carabinieri military police.

Arrests and Aftermath

Two individuals were arrested at the scene and another man who fled after the incident was found shortly later. Each of them have been taken to the hospital.

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

“This is a time for grieving,” commented Interior Minister Minister Piantedosi, who noted that previous tries had been made to remove the brother and sister trio in the previous occasions.

Property Situation

The president of the region of Veneto, Luca Zaia, stated the residence was facing an eviction order due to unpaid amounts accrued by the siblings.

Conflict resolution experts had been assigned to talk with the siblings who had barricaded themselves into the house. When the Carabinieri came shortly after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), authorities suspect a family member caused the blast.

“As we went inside, we encountered a completely deranged action,” local police chief Claudio Papagno stated to the media.

A gas canister had been activated, and the explosion directly hit our officers,” he said.

Molotov cocktails were also found at the site, the interior minister stated.

Injuries and Destruction

Those injured by the explosion consisted of an additional 11 personnel of the military police as well as a trio of personnel of the state police and a firefighter.

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

He thought the detonation had taken place on a floor above the access point and informed the press it was a “deliberate and pre-planned murder”. Shortly before the explosion, he said personnel had “heard a whistle, presumably the propane tanks being turned on”.

Community Reaction

“Everyone was aware the circumstances were severe,” local residents stated to reporters, 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’.”

The Defense Minister Guido Crosetto stood alongside other elected representatives in commemorating the three men who had been killed in the line of duty.