Monster of Florence

Il Mostro redirects here. For the 2008 book, see The Monster of Florence. For the 1994 Roberto Benigni film, see The Monster (1994 film). For the 1977 Italian film, see Il mostro (1977 film).
The Monster of Florence
Other names Il Mostro (The Monster), The Surgeon of Death, Il Mostro di Firenze, The Monster of Florence
Killings
Victims 16
Span of killings
August 21, 1968–September 7–8, 1985
Country Italy
Date apprehended
Unapprehended

The Monster of Florence, also known as Il Mostro, is an epithet commonly used for the perpetrator, or perpetrators, of 16 murders, nearly all of them couples, that took place between 1968 and 1985[1] in the province of Florence, Italy. The same gun and pattern were used in all the murders.

Overview

Four local men – Stefano Mele, Pietro Pacciani, Mario Vanni, and Giancarlo Lotti – were arrested, charged, and convicted of the crime at different times. However, these convictions have been criticized and ridiculed in the media; critics suggest that the real killer or killers have never been identified. Several other suspects were arrested and held in captivity at various times, but they were later released when subsequent murders using the same weapon and methods cast doubt on their guilt.

The English author Magdalen Nabb wrote the 1996 novel The Monster of Florence based on her extensive research and documents from the actual case. Although the book is a work of fiction, Nabb states that the investigation in the novel was real and the presentation as fiction was a protective measure. In their 2008 non-fiction book The Monster of Florence, Douglas Preston and Mario Spezi suggested the same perpetrator that Nabb had identified: Antonio Vinci (the nephew and son of two Sardinian brothers each suspected of being the Monster) as a likely candidate for being the real killer.[2] Vinci denied this in a Dateline NBC interview with Stone Phillips.[3][4]

Victims

Barbara Locci
Antonio Lo Bianco

It is reported that the widow of Lo Bianco had complained with Locci's relatives several days after the murders, saying: "Why such a bad thing had happened to my husband? Now I am alone and I have three children to grow up!" and she was answered by a brother of Mele's that Locci had to die but they were very sorry that Lo Bianco was shot down as well. Another lover of Locci's testified the woman was worried about a man that had threatened her with a gun and stated she even refused to date with him by saying: "They could shoot us down while making love inside your car".

Pasquale Gentilcore and Stefania Pettini

Books, film and television

References

  1. Lohr, David. "The Monster of Florence". Crime Library. p. 10.
  2. Preston, Douglas; Spezi, Mario (2008). The Monster of Florence. Grand Central. p. 5. ISBN 0-446-58119-4.
  3. Preston, Douglas; Spezi, Mario (2008). The Monster of Florence. Grand Central. p. 305. ISBN 0-446-58119-4.
  4. Magdalen Nabb had provided Mario Spezi with information
  5. Pezzan, Jacopo; Brunoro, Giacomo (2011). The True Stories Of The Monster Of Florence. LA CASE ISBN 978-88-905896-9-0
  6. Gasparroni, Marta (24 April 2014). "Il mostro di Firenze diventa un film con George Clooney produttore". cinema.excite.it. Excite. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  7. Facchin, Andrea (28 April 2014). "The Monster of Florence, il regista Christopher McQuarrie a Firenze per alcuni sopralluoghi". bestmovie.it. Best Movie. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  8. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0212985/alternateversions

External links

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