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A trio of officers lost their lives and no fewer than 15 additional individuals got wounded in what appears to be premeditated detonation from gas at a country home in northern Italy.

Event Timeline

The detonation took place as officers and emergency crews entered the property in the vicinity of the Verona region to execute an court-ordered eviction for a brother and sister trio aged in their 50s and 60s.

The three officers killed served in the Carabinieri force.

Investigation Developments

Two individuals were taken into custody at the scene and one more individual who fled after the blast was located soon after. Each of them have been transported to hospital.

The detonation could be audible some 5km (3 miles) away and footage from the area revealed the property turned into a mass of wreckage.

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

Background and Motive

The head of the Veneto area, the regional head, explained the residence was facing an eviction order due to financial obligations accrued by the siblings.

Conflict resolution experts had been assigned to talk with the brothers and sister who had barricaded themselves into the house. When the police reached the location soon after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), officials think one of the residents triggered the blast.

“Upon entering the house, we were confronted with an act of absolute madness,” provincial police commander Claudio Papagno informed the media.

“A gas cylinder had been activated, and the detonation directly hit our members,” he added.

Incendiary devices were also located at the residence, the minister confirmed.

Casualties and Damage

Injured individuals by the explosion comprised an additional 11 personnel of the police force as well as a trio of personnel of Italy's state police and a fire services member.

As stated by the local prosecutor, the building was in a dilapidated shape and had lacked electrical service.

The official believed the detonation had occurred on a story above the access point and informed the press it was a “deliberate and pre-planned murder”. Just prior to the incident, he said officers had “noticed a hissing sound, probably the gas canisters being opened”.

Community Reaction

“We all knew the situation was dire,” neighbors told reporters, adding that the trio had earlier warned to “detonate the property” rather than vacate the property.

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

Minister of Defence the Defence Minister stood alongside other political leaders in commemorating the three men who had lost their lives in the line of duty.