Giancarlo Giudice

Case information

• Defendant: Giancarlo Giudice
• Victim profile: Prostitutas italianas (incluyendo a su tía)

Timeline

• 26 June 1987 — Giancarlo Giudice was found culpable of nine charges of murder and was sentenced to chain perpetua; his status is recorded as “Condenado a 30 años de reclusión institución psiquiátrica 26 junio 1987”.
• 10 March 1985 — The body of Addolorata Benvenuto, 47, was found in the riverbank of the Po river.
• 18 March — Giovanna Bicchi, 64, was taken from the Po river.
• 18 March (same sequence) — The electric cable had been crudely tied around Giovanna Bicchi’s wrists; she was strangled.
• 22 May (1986, relative timing in the narrative) — Clelia Mollo, 55, was raped and tortured before being strangled until death.
• 29 June (1986, relative timing in the narrative) — Maria Paoli, 47, was thrown out of a car near a bridge over the Po river.
• Around midnight (29 June, relative timing in the narrative) — Police routinely stopped a brown Fiat driven by a bearded man, Giancarlo Giudice.

The offence

Giancarlo Giudice tortured and murdered nine Italian prostitutes, including his aunt.

Victims and circumstances described

• Annunziata Paffunda, 48

  • Her body was found dead in a burned-out car.
  • She had been tied with an electric cable.
  • An autopsy indicated she had been whipped and tortured before being placed in the vehicle, which was then set on fire.
  • Her murder remained unsolved at the time described.

• Addolorata Benvenuto, 47

  • On 10 March 1985, her body was found on the banks of the Po river.
  • Her hands had been tied with an electric cable.
  • She was shot in the head with a nine-millimetre pistol.
  • She had had sex shortly before she died.
  • She had also been whipped and tortured.

• Giovanna Bicchi, 64

  • On 18 March, she was removed from the Po river.
  • An electric cable had been crudely tied around her wrists.
  • She was strangled.
  • The narrative described that she had been walking the streets for more than four decades and was rumored to sell her body to finance her drug-addicted son.

• María Galfre, 44

  • Her body was found in a canal.
  • She had been whipped, tortured, and partially burned.

• María Corde, 44

  • On 30 April 1986, her body was found near a river.
  • She lived from prostitution.
  • She was described as the fifth victim of the series.
  • The only lead described was a report that she had been seen in the street with a short man with a beard shortly before her body was found.

• Clelia Mollo, 55

  • On 22 May, she was raped and tortured before being strangled until death.
  • The circumstances were described as different from earlier crimes.
  • She feared getting into a car and had brought her client to her apartment, where her body was found.

• María Paoli, 47

  • On 29 June, she was thrown out of a car near a bridge over the Po river.

Investigation

• Police connected the murders of Annunziata Paffunda and Addolorata Benvenuto soon after the second killing.
• Police concluded that the murders involved a loose killer who seemed to prefer older women.
• The killings were linked to a serial pattern in the described narrative, and the killer received publicity under the nickname “Demonio de Turín”.
• After the initial cluster, police had months without incidents and assumed the killer had left Turin, but the killer attacked again after about a year.

Arrest

• Police established a roadblock after they were alerted to Maria Paoli’s case near the bridge over the Po river.
• Around midnight, officers stopped a brown Fiat driven by a bearded man; the driver’s licence, property and identification were described as in order.
• One police officer asked what Giancarlo Giudice was doing in the area in the middle of the night.
• Giancarlo replied: "Buscando una muchacha."
• He added: "Son todas demasiado viejas y feas," dijo.
• During the conversation, an officer noticed a folded newspaper on the back seat.
• The officer opened the door, picked up the newspaper, and a black nine-millimetre pistol was found on the seat.
• Giancarlo was taken to police headquarters, where he claimed he had found the weapon in a trash can the previous Christmas.
• The narrative described that police had difficulty refuting this story.
• The narrative stated that the nine-millimetre weapon found in Giancarlo’s possession was the weapon that had taken Addolorata Benvenuto’s life.
• The narrative stated that Giancarlo had no criminal record, and his employers over seven years praised him as a worker and honest.

Trial

• After a period of months in jail awaiting trial, Giancarlo weakened and made a full confession.
• He admitted the nine murders and revealed details that only “Demonio de Turín” could have known.
• On 26 June 1987, Giancarlo Giudice was found culpable of nine charges of murder.
• The case record lists his status as “Condenado a 30 años de reclusión institución psiquiátrica 26 junio 1987”.
• The narrative also states he was sentenced to cadena perpetua.

Family relationship and motive details described

• María Corde was described as Giancarlo’s aunt.
• The narrative said that investigators learned that, despite blood ties between María and Giancarlo, her position was more that of prostitute and client.
• When asked about the relationship, Giancarlo admitted he favored his aunt María because she gave him a discount on his services.

Outcome

• Giancarlo Giudice was found culpable of nine charges of murder.
• He received a sentence recorded as “cadena perpetua” in the narrative, and his status field records: “Condenado a 30 años de reclusión institución psiquiátrica 26 junio 1987”.

Other details

• The narrative repeatedly described electric cables being tied around victims’ wrists or hands and included whipping and torture for multiple victims.
• The narrative described Giovanna Bicchi’s long-time street activity and the role attributed to the drug addiction of her son in the rumors.