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Three police officers perished and more than a dozen additional individuals got wounded in a seemingly deliberate detonation from gas at a farmhouse in the northern part of Italy.

Sequence of Events

The explosion occurred as police and firefighters entered the property near the Verona region to execute an court-ordered eviction for three siblings in their late 50s and mid-60s.

The three officers killed served in the Carabinieri force.

Legal Proceedings

One male and one female were arrested at the scene and one more individual who fled following the blast was located not long after. All three have been taken to hospital.

The detonation could be heard some 5km (3 miles) away and images from the scene displayed the building turned into a heap of debris.

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

Background and Motive

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

Mediators had been dispatched to talk with the family members who had secured themselves into the house. When the officers arrived shortly after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), authorities believe a family member triggered the explosion.

“As we went inside, we encountered a completely deranged action,” regional commander Claudio Papagno informed the media.

“A gas cylinder had been set off, and the blast precisely impacted our members,” he explained.

Petrol bombs were also located at the property, the minister confirmed.

Casualties and Damage

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

As stated by the Verona prosecutor, the building was in a derelict state and had lacked electrical service.

He believed the detonation had happened on a story above the entrance and informed reporters it was a “deliberate and pre-planned murder”. Just prior to the incident, he mentioned personnel had “detected a whistling noise, likely the gas canisters being turned on”.

Neighbor Statements

“Everyone was aware the circumstances were severe,” nearby inhabitants stated to local news, noting that the three had earlier warned to “detonate the property” rather than vacate the property.

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

The Defense Minister Minister Crosetto joined other political leaders in commemorating the three men who had died in the performance of their duties.