Similarities

Il Mostro di Firenze (the Monster of Florence) had murdered several people between 1968-85 – up to sixteen. The murders of Antonio lo Bianco and Barbara Locci – the first – were different. Later female victims were stabbed and some mutilated too. The scenes were staged too and Locciʼs son Natalino Mele had been in the car and witnessed the murder of his mother – he was just six years old. Natalino was also dropped off at a home near the scene of the murders.

This was unusual behaviour for a monstrous killer and it was never repeated in any of the other murders, which started six years after lo Bianco and Locci were murdered. There were differences which resulted in some believing that the 1968 murders were not committed by il Mostro, but that applied to the 1983 murders of Horst Wilhelm Meyer and Jens Uwe Rüsch as well. There were other differences between the murders of the German tourists and some of the other murders committed by il Mostro.

All sixteen murders involved the .22 calibre Beretta and most involved stabbing too – often gratuitous – and in some cases mutilation too. There were similarities in all of the murders other than just the gun and ammunition. The killer tended to strike on a Saturday and when the moon was hidden and all of the victims had attended discos the night before they were killed. It suggests that il Mostro prepared and planned his murders carefully, but despite a photo-fit of il Mostro he continued to evade justice.

Bizarre Developments

The investigation careered down a cul-de-sac at break-neck speed. Religious historian Massimo Introvigne contacted police to tell them that Florence had a long history of the occult and that the mutilation was reminiscent of their ritual. Investigators had already come to believe that the taking of genitalia was a trophy for some religious cult. However, there was absolutely no evidence to support this hypothesis.

Soon after the decision to associate the mutilation with the occult or a religious cult without a shred of evidence to support it, the person who had received the phone call, probably from il Mostro, received another call while he was on holiday. This was intriguing for police. How did the killer know that the Red Cross worker was on holiday?

Escalating Depravity

On July 29^th 1984 il Mostro murdered Claudio Stefanacci and Pia Gilda Rotini in Stefanacciʼs car in the commune of Vicchi di Mugello near Florence. Both had been shot and stabbed and il Mostro severed Rotiniʼs genitalia and left breast. Her body had been positioned like the other female victims, bar Locci. She had been stabbed a hundred times. No fingerprints were discovered. Police were baffled. But il Mostroʼs reign of terror was not over yet.

On September 8^th 1985 il Mostro struck again at the commune of San Casciano near Florence. Frenchman Jean-Michel Kraveichvilli and his girlfriend Nadine Mauriot were the last known victims of il Mostro. Kraveichvilli tried to escape after being shot, but he was caught and stabbed to death. Il Mostro repeated his mutilation of Rotini on Mauriot and later sent a macabre taunt to Assistant prosecutor Silvia Della Monica, the prosecutor who had tricked him into making the phone calls. The package contained a portion of Mauriotʼs severed breast.

While il Mostro ended his reign of terror, perhaps fearing that the newly discovered use of DNA profiling would catch up with him, the rumour mill continued speculating. Who was il Mostro? How had he gotten away with it for so long? But the vital question, how can the murders be solved remains conspicuous by its absence? Why? It is the most important question of all.

Intriguing

Il Mostro di Firenze (the Monster of Florence) had claimed his tenth or possibly twelfth victims on September 9^th 1983. The murders of German tourists Horst Wilhelm Meyer and Jens Uwe Rüsch were intriguing, as they broke the pattern. All the other victims including the four that would complete il Mostro’s murderous spree had been of a man and a woman, either making love, or seeming to have gone to the secluded places where they were killed for that purpose.

While some commentators rule out the murders of Antonio lo Bianco and Barbara Locci because they were not stabbed at all and other reasons, such as the lack of stabbing and genital mutilation of the female victim for example, compared to the other murders attributed to il Mostro, this lacked more. There was no evidence that Meyer and Rüsch were gay.

Misogynistic Sociopath

Meyer had long blonde hair and according to some could have been mistaken for a woman. That led some commentators to surmise that il Mostro mistook him for a woman and didn’t mutilate him when he realised his mistake. There is no evidence that he did mistake Meyer for a woman and not mutilate him when he realised his error, but that fits the pattern in some ways.

Il Mostro is clearly a misogynist – a sociopathic one. He removes the feminine identity of his victims. He has no interest in desexualising mutilation of men. This time it was just the thrill of killing, or perhaps there really was more than one monster at work.

The use of the Beretta and ammunition link these murders to other il Mostro crimes. But if that applies to the murders of Meyer and Rüsch, then it also applies in the first murders – those of lo Bianco and Locci.

Differences

The .22 calibre Beretta had been used in all 16 murders – four occurred after September 10^th 1983 – and the ammunition used had come from the same box. Whether the 1968 murder of lo Bianco and Locci were part of the series is a moot point. There were differences – possibly crucial ones. Locci’s body had not been sexually staged like the others and there was no genital mutilation. They had not been stabbed like the others either, but as was mentioned above that applied to Meyer and Rüsch as well.

The killer was also uncharacteristically merciful in the 1968 murders. Natalino Mele was just six years old. He was not only spared, but was dropped off at a nearby home, presumably by the killer. Natalino’s accounts were contradictory, but so what? He was a young child at the time and bound to have been traumatised by witnessing the murder of his mother.

The differences have led some to conclude that the murders of lo Bianco and Locci were not committed by il Mostro, but if not their murderer possesses important information about il Mostro as the gun was definitely used in all the killings, so how did il Mostro get it and from whom? Either il Mostro committed all the murders up to that point, or he obtained the gun used in the first killings later and used it on all his victims, but why?

The obvious answer is to clear Stefano Mele, but again why? And why choose such a bizarre method to do it? And having effectively fulfilled that purpose why continue after the 1974 killings, or at least after the gun had been linked to all the murders in 1982? Il Mostro plainly enjoys killing and hates women, especially their sexuality. Mele certainly had a motive for killing his wife and her lover, but not the rest of the victims, or even opportunity for some. Either Mele cannot be il Mostro, or there were other monsters sharing the killing.

Sadistic Mysogynist

Between 1968-85 sixteen people had been shot dead. Many had been stabbed as well and the violence against the female victims escalated. All sixteen murders were committed with the same gun and the bullets even came from the very same box of ammunition as well. The killer was a Sadistic misogynist – a particularly vicious one. The level of violence went far beyond what was needed to kill, especially on the women and it became progressively worse.

Towards the end of his reign of evil the female victims were stabbed repeatedly and had their genitals cut out as well. Two had their left breasts cut off as well. He was clearly striking at the female identity of these victims. He also sent a portion of his final victimʼs left breast to a prosecutor who had almost tricked him into revealing himself previously.The trail eventually went cold – frozen it could be said – but why?

An Innocent

There was no shortage of theories, hunches and Chinese whispers as to who il Mostro di Firenze (the Monster of Florence) was. As would be expected in such a case the main suspects were far from angels. There were two or even three main lines of enquiry.

The first victims Antonio lo Bianco and Barbara Locci were murdered in 1968. It took several killings and almost fifteen years to realise that all the murders had been committed with the same gun. By that time Locciʼs husband Stefano Mele had been sentenced to fourteen years imprisonment and had served six. Was he the monster? He couldnʼt possibly have committed all of the murders and this was well known to investigators.

Mele certainly had a powerful motive for the 1968 murders. Locci had a stream of lovers and flaunted it in Meleʼs face, but Mele clearly could not have been il Mostro. The crime spree continued while he was in prison, which meant that either Mele was completely innocent, or there was another killer who got possession of the same gun and just happened to be a particularly vicious serial killer.

Embarrassing

Meleʼs account to investigators was contradictory. It wasnʼt difficult to see why investigators in 1968 had focused on him. His 6-year-old son Natalino had not only been spared, but carried to a nearby home and dropped off there. For a monster who would later kill and mutilate victims in a chilling fashion, this behaviour defied logic. It suggested that the murders of lo Bianco and Locci may well not have been committed by il Mostro, but by someone known to them and who cared about the child. Stefano Mele certainly ticked those boxes.

After all, why would a Sadistic misogynist serial killer care about killing one more, even if it was a child? And why would such a vicious killer take the trouble to ensure that the child not only survived, but was looked after? It made no sense, especially as it increased the prospect of detection. However, if the killer was related to Natalino or cared about him it made perfect sense. No wonder investigators quickly homed in on Stefano Mele.

Stefano was an obvious suspect in the murders of lo Bianco and Locci. The conduct of the killer after the murders also fitted Mele – Natalino was his son after all. He must have known that he would be a prime suspect. The contradictions in his accounts to police and his confession all but secured his fate, but the lack of scientific evidence was surprising to say the least.

And of course the weapon used to kill lo Bianco and Locci was used by il Mostro for the other murders. Either the first murders were not part of the series of il Mostro crimes at all, or there was not just one monster, or il Mostro committed all the crimes. Despite some convictions there remains a widespread belief in Tuscany that the Monster was never brought to justice.

Vindication

The Cardiff Five were the first victims of a British miscarriage of justice to be vindicated in the DNA age in Britain by the conviction of the real killer. It had elsewhere several times. It took a lot to shock the late Yusef Abdullahi after all he had been through, but I believe that he would have been as shocked and appalled as I am over one of the most ineptly handled investigations of all time.

There have been books, documentaries, numerous column inches and films in the pipeline, but despite the vindication of at least three wrongfully convicted men – four really and at least one more wrongly accused – the terrible saga of il Mostro di Firenze (the Monster of Florence) is no nearer resolution. But it should have been. There is simply no excuse for the disgraceful investigations and prosecutions that have occurred in this inquiry – ones that have had the dreadful consequence of ensuring that il Mostro has yet to be brought to justice.

Serial Killerʼs Reign of Terror Begins

Il Mostro is the most prolific serial killer in Tuscan history – only Genoa-based killer Donato Bilancia – il Mostro di Liguria – surpassed his total between 1997-98 with 17 victims. The investigation that resulted in Bilancia’s conviction in 2000 and sentence never to be released was everything the investigation into Florence’s monster should have been. Il Mostro di Firenze used the same gun a .22 Beretta to kill 16 people between 1968-85. He preyed on young lovers.

On August 21^st 1968 Antonio lo Bianco and Barbara Locci were surprised by a gun-wielding psychopath in Signa – a small Tuscan town west of Florence. It was the beginning of il Mostro’s reign of terror that would end as abruptly as it began. Locci’s six year-old son Natalino Mele was asleep in the back-seat of the car. He woke up and fled, eventually getting help. He was severely traumatised. His mother was well-known for having a string of lovers.

Natalino’s father Stefano was convicted of the killings and was the first of the suspects wrongly thought to be il Mostro. Mele could not have been the serial killer. He served six years in prison and during his incarceration the killings continued. Investigators discovered eight .22 calibre shell casings at the scene of crime – a potentially crucial discovery, or at least it should have been.

Stefano Mele soon confessed to the murders and was convicted two years later. He was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment, but there were discrepancies –serious ones, as time would eventually tell.

Further Atrocities

Six years later (September 15^th 1974), while Mele was still incarcerated, teenagers Pasquale Gentilcore and his girlfriend Stefania Pettini were murdered in Borga San Lorenzo a commune near Florence. Pettini had been stabbed 97 times as well as being shot with the killer’s .22 Beretta. Her corpse had been violated with the stalk of a grape-vine as well and her body had been staged too – spread-eagled and penetrated by the stalk. Three initial suspects were investigated and quickly ruled out. The investigation stalled.

A further seven years elapsed before the killer struck again. On June 6^th 1981 the bodies of Giovanni Foggi and Carmela di Nuccio were discovered in another commune near Florence – called Scandicci. Il Mostro had cut out di Nuccio’s vagina. His depravity and brutality were escalating. The second innocent man would soon be jailed – Enzo Spalletti discussed aspects of the killings before it had been announced. He spent just over three months in prison. He was proved innocent when il Mostro struck again at another commune near Florence – Calenzano – during Spalletti’s incarceration.

On October 23^rd 1981 Stefano Baldi and Susanna Cambi became il Mostro’s seventh and eighth victims. Both had been shot and stabbed repeatedly. Cambi’s vagina had also been cut out. Il Mostro was proficient with both gun and knife. It was plain that Mele was not il Mostro and despite Spalletti’s false claim that he had read details of the killing of Foggi and di Nuccio in press reports, he could not be the killer either. Investigators dropped the charges against Spalletti. This meant that they conceded the murders were the work of the same deranged killer.

Eight months later (June 19^th 1982) il Mostro struck again in another commune near Florence, Montespertoli. Paolo Mainardi and Antonella Migliorini were shot as with the others in or near their car. As with other victims they were lovers. Mainardi was alive when found, but subsequently died from his injuries. The genital mutilation of the previous two female victims didn’t happen and the killer tried to drive Mainardi’s car, but lost control and abandoned the attempt. The prosecutor investigating this crime persuaded media to report that Mainardi had given a description of the killer. It appeared to worry the killer. The hospital was contacted by a man demanding details of what Mainardi had said, but he was not identified.

Significant Development

A police officer involved in the 1968 atrocity thought that the recent murders were similar to that of lo Bianco and Locci. Francesco Fiore insisted on comparing the ballistic evidence. It revealed that the weapon used by il Mostro was the same weapon that had been to kill lo Bianco and Locci. It also proved that the bullets all came from a box of 50.

Rather than admit that Mele plainly was not il Mostro, it was suggested that he had an accomplice who carried on the killings when Mele was in jail. Mele refused to cooperate with investigators, which was hardly a surprising stance given the reluctance – refusal even – to contemplate, let alone accept that the evidence vindicated Mele or should have done.

Almost a year elapsed before il Mostro struck again. It broke the pattern as both victims were male, but German tourists Horst Wilhelm Meyer and Jens Uwe Rüsch were shot dead in their camper on September 9^th 1983 in Galluzzo a suburb of Florence. At first the crimes were not thought to have been committed by il Mostro, but the ballistic evidence proved that the same Beretta and ammunition had been used. Il Mostro had claimed his eleventh and twelfth victims and the authorities were no nearer to catching him – there would be at least four more. They were, however, on the verge of adopting a bizarre case-hypothesis.

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