The Monster of Florence: The horrific true story behind the crime drama, explored

Netflix is back with The Monster of Florence, a gritty and captivating crime drama series that explores the true crime story of the infamous titular killer, who operated in the Tuscan countryside in Italy from 1968 to 1985.

Known as one of Italy’s first serial killers, The Monster of Florence, looks at the titular “IL Mostro di Firenze”, who killed young couples outside Florence. These couples used to park their cars in isolated areas and tried to get intimate with each other for some private moments.

The terror of the killer remained for 17 years, and ultimately, even though there were many suspects, there was no definite answer as to who began this rampage.

The Monster of Florence is directed by Stefano Sollima and features Marco Bullitta, Francesca Olia, and others. The show has four episodes, and as with other Netflix shows based on true crime, The Monster of Florence has plenty of thrills and suspense. Here’s a look at the true story behind the series.

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Details about the true crime story that inspired The Monster of Florence

The Monster of Florence investigates the infamous serial killer operating in Florence from 1968 to 1985, who used to kill couples trying to get intimate in their cars.

The first victims were Antonio Lo Bianco and Barbara Locci, who were shot to death in August 1968 with a .22 caliber handgun in Signa, Florence. Locci’s husband Stefano Mele was initially charged with murder and even served six years in jail.

However, during his imprisonment, another murder took place of a couple with the same gun, and investigators believed that other partners of Locci could be the killer. Over a period of 17 years, 14 more people were killed and always with the same gun.

The Monster of Florence looks at this serial killer, who used to kill brutally, and the show looks at court records and testimonies of the people. After Lo Bianco and Locci in 1968, the next murder took place in 1974 when Stefania Pettini and Pasquale Gentilcore were shot and stabbed for trying to get intimate in a car.

The Monster of Florence was known for his brutality towards the victims, especially women, after killing them, as in the case of Pettini’s body had injuries, marks of violation, and stab wounds. After seven years, Giovanni Foggi and Carmela De Nuccio were also shot in 1981, and De Nuccio’s body was also mutilated.

Enzo Spalletti was charged with the latter’s murder and jailed, but was released when another set of murders took place. Four months after the last murder, Stefano Baldi and Susanna Cambi were the next victims. Next year, in 1982, Paolo Mainardi and Antonella Migliorini were also killed.

In 1983, Wilhelm Friedrich Horst Meyer and Jens Uwe Rüsch were killed, and in 1984, Claudio Stefanacci and Pia Gilda Rontini were the victims, and Rontini’s body was mutilated. Finally, in 1985, Jean Michel Kraveichvili and Nadine Mauriot were the final victims.

The police began to link all these murders, and it was journalist Mario Spezi, who coined the name, The Monster of Florence. While this case led to a lot of high-profile investigations and created terror throughout the area, the infamous killer was never caught with conviction.

Several of Locci’s lovers were arrested and suspected, one was Francesco Vinci, then, Mele’s brother and brother-in-law, Giovanni Mele and Piero Muccianrini, were also arrested. In 1984, Francesco’s brother Salvatore Vinci was suspected, who was also a former lover of Locci.

However, all of them were never the one and another suspect was Pietro Pacciani, who had a history of crime. He was convicted of the murders in 1994; however, it was discovered that the evidence against him was planted by the police, and he was released in 1996. He ultimately died in 1998.

There have been several theories about the murderers, but the identity of the killer could not be discovered.

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More details about The Monster of Florence

Director Sollima is known for series like Gomorrah and movies like Without Remorse. In an interview with Variety, he states that,

"The Monster of Florence is not only an unsolved judicial case, but a mystery that marks our relationship with pain, fear, and silence...The murdered couples, the horrors perpetrated on young women, never fully understood, are a wound that has remained open for too long. The story of a shadow that has never disappeared.”

Along with Sollima, the show is created by Leonardo Fasoli and is produced by The Apartment and Sollima’s AlterEgo single. The producers of the show are Lorenzo Mieli, Sollima, and Gina Gardini. The series has been shot on location, and viewers will need an active subscription to Netflix to watch the show, which was released on October 22, 2025.

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