for murder. and just when you think this case couldn t get any stranger, another twist. an ex-con came to spezi and in return for a few euros gave him a white-hot tip. the source claimed that carlo had taken him to one of his hideaways on the grounds of this centuries-old villa, and what he had seen inside might crack the monster case once and for all. he told me that he saw in his house the gun and in a little armoire six metallic boxes. the gun, and in an armoire, six boxes matching the number of women who had been mutilated by the monster. tantalizing, and if true, proof that carlo was the killer. did you believe it? well, yes. spezi just about had a heart attack. he was telling me this. i said, mario, this sounds too good to be true. it s a renaissance villa. but preston was intrigued enough that he asked spezi to
What do you think of this theory? it s completely crazy. it s completely crazy. spezi developed his own very different theory based on something he says he was told by a high-ranking member of the carabinieri, the italian federal police. they tell me to a journalist who is writing about the monster, they told this new story very interesting. the carabinieri had withdrawn from the case years before, reportedly outraged at the way it was being managed by local investigators. but obsession is obsession. they continued a secret investigation into the sardinian connection to see if they could figure out who the monster of florence was. the unofficial investigation had led to a suspect. he was the son of one of the sardinians involved in the 68 murder. so he could have gotten hold of the gun. the key to the whole mystery. this is the real, real problem of the case of the monster of florence. who has the gun and how they
so you are not the monster of florence? you asked him outright? i asked him directly. i asked him, mario, i m sorry. i can t let you do this scoop. i can t let you do this scoop. then he said something very vulgar in italian. the gist of it being what? the gist of it, i like my women living when i have sex with them. then the writers got up to leave. he said, ah, spezi, i forgot something. i never joke. and i never kid around. what did you take that to mean? well, it was a threat. in italian it s even more of a threat than it is in english. as you left his home after speaking to him, what did you think? well, me and doug, we were silent. we entered our car, and then almost at the same time, we say, it s him. if it was him, if carlo was the monster, it was a stunning moment. and it would make a great ending to their book on the monster case.
The victim? never, never. he never had sexual activity. activity with the victims, never. spezi had also seen that fbi profile of the monster and thought it just didn t match pacciani at all. the profile said the killer was probably sexually dysfunctional. pacciani was not. probably lived alone or with an older relative. pacciani had a wife and children. and was probably in his 20s at the time of the first murder. pacciani had been almost 50. you know, from the theory of the botticelli paintings and the way of the working fbi, i prefer fbi. in 1996 pacciani s conviction was overturned and he was released. but then the monster case, already as intricate as the duomo, got even more complicated. a new witness came forward to say that he was involved in the killings. he said, we were working for somebody else who needed body parts.
So here we are, more than 20 years after the end of a killing spree that left 14 young people dead. the murder weapon has never been found. there s no definitive proof of a sardinian connection, let alone of a satanic cult. the guy who tipped spezi about the villa and iron boxes was a con man out to make a few bucks and the endless investigation has now turned into a monster itself eating more of its own. the judge who interrogated doug preston is under investigation for abuse of his office. so is inspector giuttari who told us carlo was in jail when he really wasn t. giutarri is also serving a suspended sentence for making false statements in an unrelated case. and mario spezi, a high court in rome finally cleared him of criminal wrongdoing. he says the book about carlo is the last thing he ll ever write on the monster case. do you believe it? i believe. do you believe he s the one? i can t prove, but i believe. does it even matter anymore? pia was just 18 in 1984 when the