On Saturday, Italian police arrested a mafia member suspected of killing three women in Rome. The victims were two alleged Chinese prostitutes and a Colombian sex worker.
The bodies of the two Chinese women were discovered in a residential building in the Prati district on Thursday morning. An hour later, the body of the Colombian was found in an apartment in the same neighbourhood. All three victims were stabbed.
Corriere della Sera reported that footage from surveillance cameras allowed police to identify 51-year-old Giandavide De Pau. In the past, De Pau had been prosecuted for sexual assault and drug trafficking. He is also reportedly a member of a mafia clan headed by Michele Senese, who is currently serving a life sentence.
A hit or drug-induced attack?
In 2008 and 2011, the suspect spent time in a psychiatric hospital. It is not known whether he was carrying out a mafia hit or acting alone. Drugs were found at the home of family members where it is believed he hid whilst police hunted for the killer. It is possible, therefore, that this could have been part of the reason for the attack.
One of the Chinese victims was found naked on a landing. The woman, believed to be in her 40s, had suffered head and stomach injuries, Corriere della Sera also reported. The neighbour reported it to the police, who found the second Chinese woman dead when they entered the apartment.
According to residents, nobody heard the murder take place. “Everybody knew there was a house of ill repute here, I’d see people arriving at 2:00 am, 3:00 am,” a woman who lived in the building told reporters.
The body of the 65-year-old Colombian was found by a friend, Corriere della Sera said.