September 3, 2025 • 25 mins
The Beasts of Satan emerged from Milan's late 1990s heavy metal scene as something far more sinister than rebellious teenagers. What began with music, black clothing, and typical adolescent rebellion evolved into ritualistic murder that would horrify Italy and captivate international attention.
At the core of this shocking case were three figures: unpredictable drug user Andrea Volpe, manipulative leader Nicola Sapone, and steady metal devotee Paolo Leoni. Their circle was bound by more than music – they conducted blood oaths, animal sacrifices, and increasingly dangerous rituals to prove loyalty. When 16-year-old Fabio Tolles and 19-year-old Chiara Marino disappeared after leaving a popular metal club in January 1998, few suspected their supposed friends had lured them to an isolated field for ritual murder.
The breakthrough came six years later when another murder – that of Volpe's ex-girlfriend Mariangela Pezzotta – led to arrests and confessions revealing the group's horrific secrets.
The ensuing trials exposed how far the group had fallen: targeting Chiara as a "symbolic virgin," beating Fabio to death for trying to protect her, and even burying Mariangela alive in a greenhouse after a failed shooting attempt. The sentences were appropriately severe – life imprisonment for the ringleader and decades-long terms for the others, including 18-year-old Elisabetta Ballarin whose involvement particularly shocked the public.
But beyond the sensationalism lies the real story: a father's relentless six-year search for his son, four innocent lives destroyed, and the dangerous confluence of drugs, manipulation and the desperate need to belong. Listen now to understand how ordinary teenagers became killers, and why we should remember the victims' names rather than those who took their lives.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Transcriber's Name.
Reviewer's Name ClueChill, thePlace when we Follow the Paths
Of Crimes and Mysteries thatLeave Questions Behind.
Cluechill, the Place when weFollow the Paths Of Crimes and
Mysteries that Leave QuestionsBehind.
Cluechill, the Place when weFollow the Paths Of Crimes and
Mysteries that Leave QuestionsBehind.
Welcome to ClueChill, the placewhere we follow the paths of
(00:22):
crimes and mysteries that leavequestions behind.
Welcome to ClueChill, the placewhere we follow the paths of
crimes and mysteries that leavequestions behind.
Today, we are going back to thelate 1990s, to the quiet
suburbs outside Milan, italy.
Here, a small group of youngpeople gathered around music
(00:43):
parties and the promise ofbelonging To outsiders.
They were just typical rebelsthey listened to heavy metal
dressed in black, drank heavilyand experimented with drugs.
Their lives seemed to orbitaround music venues, nightclubs
(01:07):
and fields where they camped outfor concerts.
But beneath the rebel mask,something more troubling was
they called themselves theBeasts of Satan, and between
(01:37):
1998 and 2004, this circle offriends carried out a string of
murders that shocked Italy.
Their crimes were brutal,ritualistic and wrapped in a
mixture of loyalty, fear andbelief.
By the time investigatorspieced the story together, four
young people were dead, andtheir families spent years
(01:58):
searching for the missingchildren.
This is the story of the beastsof Satan.
(02:22):
Italy in the late 1990s was acountry caught between tradition
and modern life.
The Catholic Church still heldenormous influence, but younger
generations were beginning tolook elsewhere.
Music, fashion andcounterculture movements were
(02:45):
giving them new ways to definethemselves.
For many teenagers, heavy metaland hard rock became the
preferred music genre, and bandslike Slayer, black Sabbath and
Iron Maiden quickly turned intofan favourites.
Iron Maiden quickly turned intofan favorites.
(03:06):
To most, it was just shockvalue, a way to push against the
rules of family and, at times,faith.
At the same time, europe andNorth America were gripped by
(03:26):
what became known as the SatanicPanic.
Rumors of hidden cults, ritualsacrifices and demonic influence
spread through the media.
In Italy, those fears weremixed with other worries from
rising drug use, youthunemployment and a sense of
alienation.
And whilst for most youngpeople the occult was just a
(03:52):
symbol, maybe something to wearon a t-shirt or scribble in a
notebook, for a small few itbecame more serious.
Small few, it became moreserious.
They began to see it as real,and that belief would lead to
consequences far beyond anymusic preference or the sense of
(04:15):
rebellion.
The Beasts of Satan were not alarge group.
(04:36):
They were a small circle builton friendship and drug use.
The group was formed aroundthree central figures Andrea
Volpe, nicola Sapone and PaoloOssi Leoni.
Andrea Volpe had grown up in afairly ordinary household but
(05:00):
struggled to find direction.
By his 20s, drugs had become aconstant in his life.
Friends remembered him asunpredictable.
Sometimes he was lively andcharming and other times
reckless and destructive.
(05:22):
Nicola Sapone came from a morestable background.
He carried himself with moreconfidence and what set him
apart in particular was hisability to influence people.
He could read others easily andwithin the group he became
quickly a guiding force, aleader.
(05:43):
He became quickly a guidingforce, a leader.
He was someone whose voicecarried weight and whose
opinions others rarelyquestioned.
Lastly, paolo Oseileoni, as hisnickname suggested, was devoted
(06:06):
to heavy metal, especiallyBlack Sabbath.
His background was unremarkable, but his passion for the music
gave him credibility amongst hispeers.
Unlike Volpe, who wasunpredictable, or Sapone, who
was controlling, leoni wassteady.
He gave the group a sense ofstability and kept it tied to
(06:29):
the music scene that definedthem.
Together, they formed the coreof the Beasts of Satan.
Others drifted in and outaround them and on the surface,
they looked like nothing morethan a group of troubled young
people with a passion for heavymetal, rebellion and drugs.
(06:53):
But when they gathered, itwasn't only for the music.
They spent time in open fieldsor in basements, drinking, using
drugs and experimenting withrituals.
These rituals often involvedanimal sacrifices or even
(07:14):
ceremonies where they sworeoaths in blood, reciting
invocations linked to Satan.
To outsiders, it might havelooked like copying the music
they listened to, but inside thegroup the rituals quickly
became the way to showcommitment and loyalty, and
(07:38):
slowly the group pushed one steptoo far, to a place where at
least four young people wouldlose their lives.
(08:04):
It was January 1998, and in thesuburbs of Milan, the nights
were usually filled with music.
Young people gathered at smallclubs and bars, places where
heavy metal bands played lateinto the night.
Where heavy metal bands playedlate into the night.
One of the most popular venueswas the Midnight Pub, a spot
(08:34):
known for its music and itsregular crowd of local teenagers
.
And amongst them there were twofriends, fabio Tolles and
Chiara Marino.
Fabio was just 16, who spentmuch of his free time at the
club.
He was bright, easygoing andwell-liked in the scene.
(08:59):
Chiara 19, was described ascurious, searching for belonging
and fascinated by the groupthat called themselves the
Beasts of Satan.
That night, fabio and Chiara metup with Andrea Volpe, nicola
Sapone and Mario Macione.
To outsiders, it looked like anormal gathering of friends
(09:25):
drinking, smoking and talkingabout music.
But something felt differentthat evening.
After leaving the club, fabioand Chiara got into a car with
Andrea Volpe, nicola Sappone andMario Macione.
They were told they wereheading out to a nearby field to
(09:49):
keep the night going.
But the field was not for musicor parties.
It was an isolated, dark place,far away from the safety of the
city lights.
What happened next was brutal.
Fabio and Chiara were attacked,beaten and stabbed.
(10:10):
Fabio fought back, trying tosave his friend, but the group
overwhelmed him.
Chiara, who had been pulledinto a circle and treated as
part of a ritual, was killedalongside him.
The murders were not widelyrecognized at first, with no
(10:35):
bodies found.
Police treated the case as arunaway.
But the families knew Chiaraand Fabio would not just simply
disappear.
They searched desperately,handing out flyers, making calls
and pleading for information.
For years their disappearanceremained a mystery, while their
(10:59):
families searched for themrelentlessly and tragically.
It would take more deathsbefore the truth of what
happened finally came to light.
It was January 2004.
(11:36):
By then the Beasts of Satan hadbeen together for years.
Some members have drifted away,but at the core remained the
familiar trio away.
But at the core remained thefamiliar trio Andrea Volpe,
nicola Sapone and Paolo Lione.
Mariangela Pezzotta was aformer girlfriend of Volpe's.
By that point she had steppedaway from their relationship,
(12:06):
but her ties to him and herknowledge of the group remained.
Mariangela was 27, oftendescribed as caring and kind,
but her time with Andrea Volpehad been tense, mainly from his
drug use, his volatility and hisdeepening involvement in the
(12:28):
group.
Eventually, she had tried todistance herself from all of it.
For Andrea and the others, thatwas seen as betrayal.
On the 9th of January 23rd,mariangela was invited, under
the pretense of a dinner, to achalet in Golaseca, a small town
(12:53):
just outside Milan.
She walked in unaware of whatwas about to happen.
Inside she found herex-boyfriend Andrea Volpe, and,
unexpectedly, his new girlfriend, 18-year-old Elisabetta
Ballarin.
What followed was completechaos.
(13:16):
During a heated argument,andrea pulled out a revolver and
shot Mariangela in the face.
The wound was not immediatelyfatal.
She was injured and cried outfor help.
Panicked, andrea called NicolaSapone, the self-appointed group
leader.
When he arrived and realizedMariangela was still alive, he
(13:40):
mocked Andrea for failing tofinish what he had started, and
together they tried to cover upthe crime.
Mariangela was struckrepeatedly with a shovel before
being buried in a greenhousestill alive.
(14:01):
Afterwards, andrea andElisabetta, under the influence
of drugs, tried to dispose ofMariangela's car by pushing it
into a river.
Instead, they crashed it, andthis accident was their downfall
, as police arrived quickly atthe scene and both were arrested
(14:21):
.
Quickly at the scene, and bothwere arrested, now in custody.
Andrea Volpe confessed toMariangela's murder.
Immediately and, to everyone'ssurprise, he admitted not only
to this murder but also to thekillings of Fabio Tolles and
Chiara Marino six years earlier.
Also, the investigation intoMariangela's murder also brought
(14:48):
back questions about anotherdeath linked to the group, that
of Andrea Bontade.
Andrea had been a friend ofFabio Tolles and was considered
part of the circle.
And how was he connected to thegroup?
Well, he helped dig the gravewhere Fabio and Chiara were
(15:10):
later buried, but on the nightof the killings he never showed
up.
So to the others, that absencewas seen as betrayal.
Others, that absence was seenas betrayal.
In the months after Fabio andChiara's murder, friends and
family noticed changes in him.
His behaviour became erraticand his mind clouded.
(15:34):
Later testimony suggested thatmembers of the group had spiked
his drinks with acid and otherdrugs, leaving him disoriented
and struggling with everydaytasks.
And one night in September 1998, after heavy drinking at the
(15:54):
Midnight Pub, nicola Saponayreportedly pressed him with a
final threat, handing him asmall amount of money for petrol
.
Andrea is said to have told himeither you do it or we do it.
Hours later, andrea Bontadedrove his car at more than 180
(16:19):
km per hour into a wall.
There were no signs of breaking.
He was killed instantly.
More than 180 kilometers perhour into a wall.
There were no signs of breaking.
He was killed instantly.
At that time it was recorded asa tragic accident.
With Andrea Volpe in custodyand his confessions on record.
(16:44):
The investigators finally beganto see the true scope of the
group's violence.
For the first time, the closedwalls around the beasts of Satan
were beginning to break apartWith the discovery of Chiara and
(17:10):
Fabio's graves in 2004, theinvestigators were no longer
dealing with rumors orspeculation or just the case of
a runaway couple.
Now they had physical evidenceof murder and confessions that
tied all the crimes together.
They immediately arrestedNicola Sopone and Paolo Leoni,
(17:34):
but one of the most surprisingnames to emerge was that of
teenager Elisabetta Ballarini.
For many in Italy, her role inMariangela's murder was one of
the most disturbing parts of thecase.
Here was a young woman barelyout of adolescence, implicated
(17:55):
in a killing that felt bothsenseless and cruel.
Unlike the others, elisabettadidn't come from a broken
background.
Didn't come from a brokenbackground.
She came from privilege, andwhile the public might have
dismissed drug-fueled violenceamongst the troubled young men,
the idea of a girl from arespectable family being drawn
(18:19):
into the same world was deeplyshocking to them.
No doubt, to many, it seemed toprove that no children were
safe from the pool of drugs,rebellion and the so-called dark
side.
The trials began in 2005 andquickly drew national attention.
(18:42):
Across Italy, people followedevery detail.
Across Italy, people followedevery detail not only because of
the brutality of the crimes,but because of what the group
seemed to represent Young peoplelost to drugs, alienation and
(19:04):
rituals.
In court, even more disturbingdetails came to light.
It was revealed that ChiaraMarino had been singled out
because some members saw her asa symbolic virgin.
Fabio Tolles, who tried toprotect her, was beaten to death
by the so-called friends heonce trusted.
(19:26):
Death by the so-called friendshe once trusted.
And even more chilling was therevelation that this was not the
first attempt on their lives.
The group had previouslyplanned to kill them on New
Year's Eve by setting a car onfire.
This showed how deliberate andhow callous their actions truly
(19:48):
were.
Meanwhile, the media oftenfocused on the group's links to
Satanism, which fed into publicfears about youth culture, heavy
metal and the occult.
The beasts of Satan became asymbol of how rebellion, mixed
with drugs and pressure, couldspiral into violence.
(20:10):
But in the end, murder cannotbe explained away by music or by
someone's interest in asubculture.
Millions of heavy metal fansnever turned to violence or
rituals.
What set this group apart wasnot the music but their choices.
They were killers, and the ideaof ritual was just the excuse
(20:35):
they used to justify theircrimes.
Finally, the sentences handeddown reflected the gravity of
their crimes.
Andrea Volpe was given 30 yearsin prison in 2005, which was
later reduced because hecooperated with investigators.
Nicola Sapone, seen as theringleader, received life
(21:00):
imprisonment.
Paolo Leoni was sentenced to 26years and later increased to
life on appeal, and ElisabettaBallarin, only 18 at the time of
Mariangela's murder wassentenced to 24 years, later
reduced slightly to 23.
(21:22):
Other group members were alsoconvicted.
Marco Zampolo was found guiltyof taking part in the murders
through his involvement with thegroup activities and planning.
He received 26 years in prison,later raised to nearly 29 on
appeal.
(21:42):
Eros Monteroso, convicted onsimilar grounds of aiding and
participating in the killings,was given 24 years, later
increased to more than 27.
And Mario Macione, onceconsidered Fabio's closest
friend, confessed to strikinghim with a hammer during the
(22:04):
1998 killings.
He was sentenced to 26 years.
This outcome marked the end ofyears of rumors and speculation.
For the families it broughtjustice, but not closure.
The loss of Chiara, fabio,mariangela and Andrea could
(22:29):
never be undone.
We have to mention that centralto reaching this point was the
persistence of Michel Tolles,fabio's father.
From the night his sondisappeared.
He never believed the storythat Fabio and Chiara had simply
run away.
For six years he gatheredinformation, kept records of the
(22:53):
group's activities and pressedthe authorities to keep looking.
His efforts alone became avital thread in the
investigation.
It's a reminder that a parent'sdetermination to find their
child never ends.
(23:18):
The beasts of Satan are nowremembered for their brutality,
but first and foremost we mustremember the young people whose
lives were cut short ChiaraMarino, fabio Tolles, mariangela
Pezzotta and Andrea Bontade.
Four young people who deservedto live, who deserved bright
(23:43):
futures.
Their names should not be lostin the shadow of those who
killed them.
Thank you for listening.
If you would like more fromClueChannel, our Patreon members
receive bonus episodes andearly access to new releases,
(24:03):
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You can also follow us onsocial media to stay connected
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Until next time, stay curiousand stay safe, thank you.
(24:35):
©.
Transcript Emily Beynon.
Thank you,
Transcriber's Name.
Reviewer's Name ClueChill, thePlace when we Follow the Paths
Of Crimes and Mysteries thatLeave Questions Behind.
Cluechill, the Place when weFollow the Paths Of Crimes and
Mysteries that Leave QuestionsBehind.
Cluechill, the Place when weFollow the Paths Of Crimes and
Mysteries that Leave QuestionsBehind.
Welcome to ClueChill, the placewhere we follow the paths of
(00:22):
crimes and mysteries that leavequestions behind.
Welcome to ClueChill, the placewhere we follow the paths of
crimes and mysteries that leavequestions behind.
Today, we are going back to thelate 1990s, to the quiet
suburbs outside Milan, italy.
Here, a small group of youngpeople gathered around music
(00:43):
parties and the promise ofbelonging To outsiders.
They were just typical rebelsthey listened to heavy metal
dressed in black, drank heavilyand experimented with drugs.
Their lives seemed to orbitaround music venues, nightclubs
(01:07):
and fields where they camped outfor concerts.
But beneath the rebel mask,something more troubling was
they called themselves theBeasts of Satan, and between
(01:37):
1998 and 2004, this circle offriends carried out a string of
murders that shocked Italy.
Their crimes were brutal,ritualistic and wrapped in a
mixture of loyalty, fear andbelief.
By the time investigatorspieced the story together, four
young people were dead, andtheir families spent years
(01:58):
searching for the missingchildren.
This is the story of the beastsof Satan.
(02:22):
Italy in the late 1990s was acountry caught between tradition
and modern life.
The Catholic Church still heldenormous influence, but younger
generations were beginning tolook elsewhere.
Music, fashion andcounterculture movements were
(02:45):
giving them new ways to definethemselves.
For many teenagers, heavy metaland hard rock became the
preferred music genre, and bandslike Slayer, black Sabbath and
Iron Maiden quickly turned intofan favourites.
Iron Maiden quickly turned intofan favorites.
(03:06):
To most, it was just shockvalue, a way to push against the
rules of family and, at times,faith.
At the same time, europe andNorth America were gripped by
(03:26):
what became known as the SatanicPanic.
Rumors of hidden cults, ritualsacrifices and demonic influence
spread through the media.
In Italy, those fears weremixed with other worries from
rising drug use, youthunemployment and a sense of
alienation.
And whilst for most youngpeople the occult was just a
(03:52):
symbol, maybe something to wearon a t-shirt or scribble in a
notebook, for a small few itbecame more serious.
Small few, it became moreserious.
They began to see it as real,and that belief would lead to
consequences far beyond anymusic preference or the sense of
(04:15):
rebellion.
The Beasts of Satan were not alarge group.
(04:36):
They were a small circle builton friendship and drug use.
The group was formed aroundthree central figures Andrea
Volpe, nicola Sapone and PaoloOssi Leoni.
Andrea Volpe had grown up in afairly ordinary household but
(05:00):
struggled to find direction.
By his 20s, drugs had become aconstant in his life.
Friends remembered him asunpredictable.
Sometimes he was lively andcharming and other times
reckless and destructive.
(05:22):
Nicola Sapone came from a morestable background.
He carried himself with moreconfidence and what set him
apart in particular was hisability to influence people.
He could read others easily andwithin the group he became
quickly a guiding force, aleader.
(05:43):
He became quickly a guidingforce, a leader.
He was someone whose voicecarried weight and whose
opinions others rarelyquestioned.
Lastly, paolo Oseileoni, as hisnickname suggested, was devoted
(06:06):
to heavy metal, especiallyBlack Sabbath.
His background was unremarkable, but his passion for the music
gave him credibility amongst hispeers.
Unlike Volpe, who wasunpredictable, or Sapone, who
was controlling, leoni wassteady.
He gave the group a sense ofstability and kept it tied to
(06:29):
the music scene that definedthem.
Together, they formed the coreof the Beasts of Satan.
Others drifted in and outaround them and on the surface,
they looked like nothing morethan a group of troubled young
people with a passion for heavymetal, rebellion and drugs.
(06:53):
But when they gathered, itwasn't only for the music.
They spent time in open fieldsor in basements, drinking, using
drugs and experimenting withrituals.
These rituals often involvedanimal sacrifices or even
(07:14):
ceremonies where they sworeoaths in blood, reciting
invocations linked to Satan.
To outsiders, it might havelooked like copying the music
they listened to, but inside thegroup the rituals quickly
became the way to showcommitment and loyalty, and
(07:38):
slowly the group pushed one steptoo far, to a place where at
least four young people wouldlose their lives.
(08:04):
It was January 1998, and in thesuburbs of Milan, the nights
were usually filled with music.
Young people gathered at smallclubs and bars, places where
heavy metal bands played lateinto the night.
Where heavy metal bands playedlate into the night.
One of the most popular venueswas the Midnight Pub, a spot
(08:34):
known for its music and itsregular crowd of local teenagers
.
And amongst them there were twofriends, fabio Tolles and
Chiara Marino.
Fabio was just 16, who spentmuch of his free time at the
club.
He was bright, easygoing andwell-liked in the scene.
(08:59):
Chiara 19, was described ascurious, searching for belonging
and fascinated by the groupthat called themselves the
Beasts of Satan.
That night, fabio and Chiara metup with Andrea Volpe, nicola
Sapone and Mario Macione.
To outsiders, it looked like anormal gathering of friends
(09:25):
drinking, smoking and talkingabout music.
But something felt differentthat evening.
After leaving the club, fabioand Chiara got into a car with
Andrea Volpe, nicola Sappone andMario Macione.
They were told they wereheading out to a nearby field to
(09:49):
keep the night going.
But the field was not for musicor parties.
It was an isolated, dark place,far away from the safety of the
city lights.
What happened next was brutal.
Fabio and Chiara were attacked,beaten and stabbed.
(10:10):
Fabio fought back, trying tosave his friend, but the group
overwhelmed him.
Chiara, who had been pulledinto a circle and treated as
part of a ritual, was killedalongside him.
The murders were not widelyrecognized at first, with no
(10:35):
bodies found.
Police treated the case as arunaway.
But the families knew Chiaraand Fabio would not just simply
disappear.
They searched desperately,handing out flyers, making calls
and pleading for information.
For years their disappearanceremained a mystery, while their
(10:59):
families searched for themrelentlessly and tragically.
It would take more deathsbefore the truth of what
happened finally came to light.
It was January 2004.
(11:36):
By then the Beasts of Satan hadbeen together for years.
Some members have drifted away,but at the core remained the
familiar trio away.
But at the core remained thefamiliar trio Andrea Volpe,
nicola Sapone and Paolo Lione.
Mariangela Pezzotta was aformer girlfriend of Volpe's.
By that point she had steppedaway from their relationship,
(12:06):
but her ties to him and herknowledge of the group remained.
Mariangela was 27, oftendescribed as caring and kind,
but her time with Andrea Volpehad been tense, mainly from his
drug use, his volatility and hisdeepening involvement in the
(12:28):
group.
Eventually, she had tried todistance herself from all of it.
For Andrea and the others, thatwas seen as betrayal.
On the 9th of January 23rd,mariangela was invited, under
the pretense of a dinner, to achalet in Golaseca, a small town
(12:53):
just outside Milan.
She walked in unaware of whatwas about to happen.
Inside she found herex-boyfriend Andrea Volpe, and,
unexpectedly, his new girlfriend, 18-year-old Elisabetta
Ballarin.
What followed was completechaos.
(13:16):
During a heated argument,andrea pulled out a revolver and
shot Mariangela in the face.
The wound was not immediatelyfatal.
She was injured and cried outfor help.
Panicked, andrea called NicolaSapone, the self-appointed group
leader.
When he arrived and realizedMariangela was still alive, he
(13:40):
mocked Andrea for failing tofinish what he had started, and
together they tried to cover upthe crime.
Mariangela was struckrepeatedly with a shovel before
being buried in a greenhousestill alive.
(14:01):
Afterwards, andrea andElisabetta, under the influence
of drugs, tried to dispose ofMariangela's car by pushing it
into a river.
Instead, they crashed it, andthis accident was their downfall
, as police arrived quickly atthe scene and both were arrested
(14:21):
.
Quickly at the scene, and bothwere arrested, now in custody.
Andrea Volpe confessed toMariangela's murder.
Immediately and, to everyone'ssurprise, he admitted not only
to this murder but also to thekillings of Fabio Tolles and
Chiara Marino six years earlier.
Also, the investigation intoMariangela's murder also brought
(14:48):
back questions about anotherdeath linked to the group, that
of Andrea Bontade.
Andrea had been a friend ofFabio Tolles and was considered
part of the circle.
And how was he connected to thegroup?
Well, he helped dig the gravewhere Fabio and Chiara were
(15:10):
later buried, but on the nightof the killings he never showed
up.
So to the others, that absencewas seen as betrayal.
Others, that absence was seenas betrayal.
In the months after Fabio andChiara's murder, friends and
family noticed changes in him.
His behaviour became erraticand his mind clouded.
(15:34):
Later testimony suggested thatmembers of the group had spiked
his drinks with acid and otherdrugs, leaving him disoriented
and struggling with everydaytasks.
And one night in September 1998, after heavy drinking at the
(15:54):
Midnight Pub, nicola Saponayreportedly pressed him with a
final threat, handing him asmall amount of money for petrol
.
Andrea is said to have told himeither you do it or we do it.
Hours later, andrea Bontadedrove his car at more than 180
(16:19):
km per hour into a wall.
There were no signs of breaking.
He was killed instantly.
More than 180 kilometers perhour into a wall.
There were no signs of breaking.
He was killed instantly.
At that time it was recorded asa tragic accident.
With Andrea Volpe in custodyand his confessions on record.
(16:44):
The investigators finally beganto see the true scope of the
group's violence.
For the first time, the closedwalls around the beasts of Satan
were beginning to break apartWith the discovery of Chiara and
(17:10):
Fabio's graves in 2004, theinvestigators were no longer
dealing with rumors orspeculation or just the case of
a runaway couple.
Now they had physical evidenceof murder and confessions that
tied all the crimes together.
They immediately arrestedNicola Sopone and Paolo Leoni,
(17:34):
but one of the most surprisingnames to emerge was that of
teenager Elisabetta Ballarini.
For many in Italy, her role inMariangela's murder was one of
the most disturbing parts of thecase.
Here was a young woman barelyout of adolescence, implicated
(17:55):
in a killing that felt bothsenseless and cruel.
Unlike the others, elisabettadidn't come from a broken
background.
Didn't come from a brokenbackground.
She came from privilege, andwhile the public might have
dismissed drug-fueled violenceamongst the troubled young men,
the idea of a girl from arespectable family being drawn
(18:19):
into the same world was deeplyshocking to them.
No doubt, to many, it seemed toprove that no children were
safe from the pool of drugs,rebellion and the so-called dark
side.
The trials began in 2005 andquickly drew national attention.
(18:42):
Across Italy, people followedevery detail.
Across Italy, people followedevery detail not only because of
the brutality of the crimes,but because of what the group
seemed to represent Young peoplelost to drugs, alienation and
(19:04):
rituals.
In court, even more disturbingdetails came to light.
It was revealed that ChiaraMarino had been singled out
because some members saw her asa symbolic virgin.
Fabio Tolles, who tried toprotect her, was beaten to death
by the so-called friends heonce trusted.
(19:26):
Death by the so-called friendshe once trusted.
And even more chilling was therevelation that this was not the
first attempt on their lives.
The group had previouslyplanned to kill them on New
Year's Eve by setting a car onfire.
This showed how deliberate andhow callous their actions truly
(19:48):
were.
Meanwhile, the media oftenfocused on the group's links to
Satanism, which fed into publicfears about youth culture, heavy
metal and the occult.
The beasts of Satan became asymbol of how rebellion, mixed
with drugs and pressure, couldspiral into violence.
(20:10):
But in the end, murder cannotbe explained away by music or by
someone's interest in asubculture.
Millions of heavy metal fansnever turned to violence or
rituals.
What set this group apart wasnot the music but their choices.
They were killers, and the ideaof ritual was just the excuse
(20:35):
they used to justify theircrimes.
Finally, the sentences handeddown reflected the gravity of
their crimes.
Andrea Volpe was given 30 yearsin prison in 2005, which was
later reduced because hecooperated with investigators.
Nicola Sapone, seen as theringleader, received life
(21:00):
imprisonment.
Paolo Leoni was sentenced to 26years and later increased to
life on appeal, and ElisabettaBallarin, only 18 at the time of
Mariangela's murder wassentenced to 24 years, later
reduced slightly to 23.
(21:22):
Other group members were alsoconvicted.
Marco Zampolo was found guiltyof taking part in the murders
through his involvement with thegroup activities and planning.
He received 26 years in prison,later raised to nearly 29 on
appeal.
(21:42):
Eros Monteroso, convicted onsimilar grounds of aiding and
participating in the killings,was given 24 years, later
increased to more than 27.
And Mario Macione, onceconsidered Fabio's closest
friend, confessed to strikinghim with a hammer during the
(22:04):
1998 killings.
He was sentenced to 26 years.
This outcome marked the end ofyears of rumors and speculation.
For the families it broughtjustice, but not closure.
The loss of Chiara, fabio,mariangela and Andrea could
(22:29):
never be undone.
We have to mention that centralto reaching this point was the
persistence of Michel Tolles,fabio's father.
From the night his sondisappeared.
He never believed the storythat Fabio and Chiara had simply
run away.
For six years he gatheredinformation, kept records of the
(22:53):
group's activities and pressedthe authorities to keep looking.
His efforts alone became avital thread in the
investigation.
It's a reminder that a parent'sdetermination to find their
child never ends.
(23:18):
The beasts of Satan are nowremembered for their brutality,
but first and foremost we mustremember the young people whose
lives were cut short ChiaraMarino, fabio Tolles, mariangela
Pezzotta and Andrea Bontade.
Four young people who deservedto live, who deserved bright
(23:43):
futures.
Their names should not be lostin the shadow of those who
killed them.
Thank you for listening.
If you would like more fromClueChannel, our Patreon members
receive bonus episodes andearly access to new releases,
(24:03):
and if you enjoy the show,rating and reviewing us helps
others discover it too.
You can also follow us onsocial media to stay connected
and continue the conversation.
Until next time, stay curiousand stay safe, thank you.
(24:35):
©.
Transcript Emily Beynon.
Thank you,
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