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Three members of law enforcement perished and more than a dozen people were hurt in a seemingly intentional blast caused by gas at a country home in Italy's north.

Sequence of Events

The explosion occurred as officers and emergency crews went into the house in the vicinity of the Verona region to enforce an removal notice for two brothers and a sister who were older adults.

Each of the three victims who died were members of the Italian military police.

Arrests and Aftermath

One male and one female got detained at the scene and one more individual who fled after the incident was apprehended not long after. The trio have been taken to medical facility.

The explosion could be noticed some 5km (3 miles) away and images from the location showed the building left as a pile of rubble.

“This is a time for grieving,” stated Interior Minister Minister Piantedosi, who mentioned that efforts had been made to displace the three siblings in the earlier times.

Financial Context

The leader of the Veneto region, the regional head, explained the farmhouse was under an removal notice due to debts accumulated by the siblings.

Negotiators had been assigned to speak to the brothers and sister who had secured themselves into the house. When the police came just after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), investigators think one of the residents set off the blast.

“Upon entering the house, we were confronted with an act of absolute madness,” regional commander Commander Papagno informed reporters.

“A gas cylinder had been ignited, and the blast precisely impacted our members,” he added.

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

Injuries and Destruction

Injured individuals by the blast included an additional 11 personnel of the military police as well as three officers of the state police and a fire services member.

According to the local prosecutor, the farmhouse was in a dilapidated shape and had no electricity.

The prosecutor believed the detonation had happened on a level above the doorway and stated to reporters it was a “deliberate and pre-planned murder”. Shortly before the blast, he revealed members had “detected a whistling noise, probably the gas cylinders being activated”.

Local Response

“All of us understood the scenario was critical,” neighbors informed local news, adding that the three had in the past stated to “detonate the property” rather than be evicted.

“The explosion had left a ‘terrible, very painful and dramatic toll’.”

The Defense Minister Minister Crosetto stood alongside other elected representatives in honoring the trio of personnel who had lost their lives in the line of duty.