🔗 Share this article

A trio of officers were killed and at least 15 others sustained injuries in an apparently deliberate gas explosion at a rural property in northern Italy.

How It Happened

The detonation was triggered as law enforcement and fire personnel entered the property close to the city of Verona to carry out an removal notice for a brother and sister trio in their late 50s and mid-60s.

All three deceased individuals belonged to the Italian military police.

Investigation Developments

Two individuals were taken into custody at the site and another man who escaped after the blast was apprehended not long after. The trio have been taken to the hospital.

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

“We are in a period of mourning,” commented the Minister of the Interior Matteo Piantedosi, who noted that previous tries had been made to remove the brother and sister trio in the previous occasions.

Background and Motive

The head of the Veneto region, President Zaia, explained the residence was subject to an court order due to unpaid amounts accumulated by the three owners.

Mediators had been dispatched to talk with the brothers and sister who had barricaded themselves into the home. When the police arrived just after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), investigators believe one of the residents set off the explosion.

“When we entered the property, we faced an utterly insane act,” provincial police commander Commander Papagno informed reporters.

A gas canister had been set off, and the detonation precisely impacted our officers,” he said.

Molotov cocktails were also discovered at the site, the minister confirmed.

Casualties and Damage

Injured individuals by the incident comprised 11 other members of the military police as well as three officers of national police and a firefighter.

As stated by the prosecuting attorney, the building was in a poor condition and had was without power.

The prosecutor believed the blast had occurred on a floor above the access point and stated to the press it was a “premeditated and voluntary homicide”. Just prior to the blast, he revealed members had “detected a whistling noise, presumably the gas cylinders being activated”.

Community Reaction

“We all knew the situation was dire,” nearby inhabitants informed local news, mentioning that the family members had previously threatened to “blow themselves up” rather than be evicted.

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

The Defense Minister Guido Crosetto joined other government officials in paying tribute to the three officers who had been killed in the service of their country.