Cayetano Santos Godino

Case overview

Cayetano Santos Godino (October 31, 1896 – November 15, 1944), also known as "Petiso Orejudo" ("Big Eared Midget"), was an Argentinian serial killer.

Background

Godino was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, one of eight boys. His father and mother were Fiore Godino and Lucia Ruffo. Both parents were alcoholics and abusive. Godino’s father contracted syphilis before Godino was born, causing Godino to experience serious childhood health problems.

The case material described early signs of violence from childhood, including killing cats and birds and enjoying playing with fire. Godino’s violent behavior and lack of interest in education caused him to jump from school to school.

The material described that Godino had been involved in compulsory masturbation, and that he was placed in a two-month jail term after his mother told the police about it. It also described that, after further behavior, authorities sent him to a reformatory/colony described as the Colony of Smaller Peace for three years, and later allowed him to come home for the Christmas Holiday Season on Dec. 23, 1911.

The offence

The case material stated that Godino was responsible for the murder of four children, the attempted murder of another seven children, and the arson of seven buildings.

Murders and attempted murders involving children

The case material described an incident when Godino was seven: he beat two-year-old Miguel de Paoli and threw him into a ditch. A nearby official saw this and led the children to the police station, where their mothers picked them up a few hours later.

A year later, the case material described that Godino beat Ana Neri, a child in his neighborhood, with a stone. A police officer intervened, and Godino was released from jail due to his young age.

The case material described further offenses:

• When Godino was 10, his parents discovered his compulsive masturbation and told police, resulting in a two-month jail term.
• On January 26, 1912, Arturo Laurona, 13, was found dead in an abandoned house.
• On March 7, 1912, Godino set fire to the dress of Reyna Vainicoff, 5, who did not recover and died some days later.
• On November 8, 1912, the case material described that Godino tried to choke 8-year-old Roberto Russo; he was arrested and charged with attempted murder but was released until the trial.
• On November 20, 1912, the case material described that Godino kidnapped two-year-old Carolina Neolener, who cried out and was rescued by a neighbour.
• On December 3, 1912, the case material described that Godino lured Jesualdo Giordano, an outside-play child, by offering to buy sweets, then took him to a country house, unsuccessfully tried to choke him with a belt, tied his hands and legs, beat him, and later hammered a nail into the side of Jesualdo Giordano’s skull and hid the corpse; the body was found by the father minutes later. The case material also described that at 8:00 PM Godino went to the wake and touched the skull where he had fixed the nail.
• At 5:30 a.m. on December 4, 1912, the case material described that Godino was arrested by police, confessing his crimes.

The case material also included additional named incidents in narrative form:

• It described that Godino hit Carmen Ghittoni on November 16, 1912, causing minor wounds before a police officer intervened.
• It described that he unsuccessfully tried to choke another child and that several other children were targeted in attempts not resulting in death, consistent with the stated “attempted murder of another seven children.”
• The narrative also described the attempted harming of a child identified as Gerald {Jesual}, a three-year-old, during the December 3–4, 1912 events culminating in his death, as well as involvement of a father named Mr. Giordano and a neighbor/family context around the wake and arrest.

Animals and other violence described in the narrative

The case material included violence against animals:

• It described in jail that Godino was placed under circumstances due to having killed two cats which were their pets; during 1933 he spent some time in hospital for a beating he suffered from inmates.
• It described that in 1933 he strangled a cat and tossed the corpse on the fire, and that other inmates beat him so badly he had to spend 20 days in the hospital.
• It also included a separate narrative detail that on Sept. 24 (year not specified in the narrative portion) he crept into a stable and killed a mare with a knife.

Investigation and arrest

The case material stated that police grew suspicious due to Godino’s presence at “possible” crime scenes and his explanations about being at the exact moment children needed help.

For the December 3–4, 1912 events, the case material described that:

• Mrs. Maria Giordano, a neighbor of the Godino’s, looked out her front door and saw clouds over her front door, then sent Godino out to play along a path with outdoor permission while she completed household chores.
• The case material described that Jesualdo/“Gerald” Giordano was involved and that his father looked for him; it described that the father met Godino near a junkyard and that a witness (described as the woman working in the store) later helped police.

The case material stated that the police arrested Godino at 5:30 a.m. on December 4, 1912, after he had been involved in the fatal events on December 3, 1912, and after Godino confessed his crimes.

Trial

The case material described that Godino was charged for 3 murders and 11 aggressions.

Sentencing and confinement

The case material described the decision to commit Godino to a mental hospital:

• Because Cayetano Godino was only 15 at the time, the two judges decided to send him to a Mental Hospital of Merceds, where he was sentenced for the next two years.
• The case material stated that while he was in the hospital, the most important men of criminal psychiatry examined him and concluded that his degeneration came from lack of affection, the limitation of intelligence, his destructive impulse, and the problem that his father had before he was even born. It also described that the hospital head named him "Stupid Idiot one" and "Moral Crazy One".
• The case material stated that while in the hospital, Godino assaulted and injured two inmates, one in a wheelchair and other confined to his bed.
• It described that he made many attempts of escape, and that the court decided and he was sent to the National Penitentiary in Ushuaia.

It also described:

• On 4 January 1913, Godino entered a reformatory, where he tried to kill some inmates.
• Due to medical reports that declared him insane, the judge discontinued the case and ordered him to stay in the reformatory.
• On 12 November 1915 an appeal was approved ordering him to be moved to jail on 20 November.

It further described:

• On 28 March 1923, Godino was transferred to Ushuaia Penitentiary.
• During the course of 1933 he spent some time in hospital for a beating he suffered from inmates due to having killed two cats which were their pets.
• From 1935 onwards he was always ill and received no visitors until he died in 1944 in strange circumstances.

Prison life and medical/disciplinary events

The case material described conditions and incidents in the penitentiary:

• In Ushuaia, he was written up 13 times for bizarre behavior.
• It described him as a loner and that he was mistreated by other inmates and was raped continuously.
• It stated he never received visitors or letters from his family.
• It described he was never remorseful about anything he had done on the outside or in prison.
• It stated that in 1927 he had his ears pinned back in an operation in an attempt to treat the cause of his “badness,” and that it did not improve his behavior.
• It stated that in 1936, he requested his freedom and it was denied because doctors reported he was a “stupid idiot” and still extremely dangerous for anyone around him.

The case material included a quotation about fire:

"I like to see firemen working. It's nice to see how they fall into the fire."

Outcome

Godino was found dead in his cell on Nov. 15, 1944. The case material stated that the official cause was internal bleeding caused by a gastrities outbreak, and it also included narrative speculation about an inmate harming him; however, only the official cause was stated as a cause in the record. The prison was closed down in 1947. The material stated that when graves were dug up, the bones of Cayetano were missing, and it said it was later learned that someone made a paperweight with one of his bones inside it and gave it as a gift to the last director of the prison.

Timeline

• January 17, 1912 — Godino set fire to a warehouse on Corrientes Street.
• January 26, 1912 — Arturo Laurona, 13, was found dead in an abandoned house.
• March 7, 1912 — Godino set fire to the dress of Reyna Vainicoff, 5; she died some days later.
• Late September 1912 — Godino set fire to a railway station; it was extinguished without extensive damage.
• November 8, 1912 — Godino tried to choke 8-year-old Roberto Russo; he was arrested and charged with attempted murder but released until the trial.
• November 16, 1912 — Godino hit Carmen Ghittoni, who suffered minor wounds before a police officer intervened.
• November 20, 1912 — Godino kidnapped two-year-old Carolina Neolener; she was rescued by a neighbour.
• December 3, 1912 — Godino lured Jesualdo Giordano, took him to a country house, beat him, tied his hands and legs, later hammered a nail into the side of Jesualdo Giordano’s skull, and hid the corpse.
• December 4, 1912 (5:30 a.m.) — Godino was arrested by police, confessing his crimes.
• January 4, 1913 — Godino entered a reformatory and tried to kill some inmates.
• December 4, 1912 — Godino was arrested at 5:30 a.m. (confessing his crimes).
• 12 November 1915 — An appeal was approved ordering him to be moved to jail on 20 November.
• 20 November (year not specified in status field) — Godino was ordered to be moved to jail.
• 28 March 1923 — Godino was transferred to Ushuaia Penitentiary.
• November 15, 1944 — Godino died in prison.

Other details

• The case material described that Godino told police, after being arrested in connection with the fire incident, "I like to see firemen working. It's nice to see how they fall into the fire."
• It stated that he confessed his crimes after arrest on December 4, 1912.
• It stated that during 1933 he spent time in hospital for a beating from inmates due to killing two cats that were their pets.
• The material included that, from 1935 onwards, Godino was always ill and received no visitors.
• The material also included references to a wake and a skull with a nail fixed, and stated that Godino touched the skull at 8:00 PM before arrest.
• It listed category descriptors in the characteristics/labels used for the case, including “Juvenile (10-16) - Arsonist.”