Olgiata Murder - Contessa’s Servant Arrested Twenty Years On
MILAN – Dramatic developments are unfolding in the inquiry into the Olgiata murder, one of Italy’s most celebrated cold cases, dating from 10 July 1991. Manuel Winston, the manservant of victim Contessa Alberica Filo della Torre, has been detained. Mr Winston was taken into custody because it was feared he might run away. After years of inertia, the Filipino was put in the frame by DNA taken from articles held as evidence. Investigators believe that the contessa may have intended to report him for theft, and he may then have reacted. The murder and inquiry appear to mirror the course of the Via Poma killing in Rome, in which Simonetta Cesaroni died in August 1990. New investigation techniques based on examination of genetic evidence identified Ms Cesaroni’s former boyfriend Raniero Busco as the murderer. A few months ago, he was found guilty in the court of first instance.
TRAPPED BY DNA – Manuel Winston, now 41, was working at the contessa’s villa in Rome’s Olgiata district at the time of the murder. It was the contessa’s widower, Pietro Mattei, who pressed for further investigations involving the use of new, more sophisticated technology for the identification of biological traces, in particular, on the evidence taken from the room where the murder was committed. Articles held include a paper handkerchief bearing traces of mucus, Mr Winston’s trousers and those of Roberto Iacono, the son of the contessa’s housekeeper, the sheet from the contessa’s bed, the clog with which she was struck on the head and various items of her underwear. Three years ago, the investigating magistrate from the court in Rome rejected an application for dismissal from the two long-standing suspects, former servant Winston Manuel and the housekeeper’s son. The judge ordered the public prosecutor’s office to review all the evidence, starting with the clog used to bludgeon the contessa to death, using new biological tests and forensic equipment. Mr Mattei’s lawyer, Giuseppe Marazzita, objected to the dismissal of the case against Winston and Iacono, having collected new evidence and discovered a new witness, one of the contessa’s female friends to whom the murdered woman had confessed that she thought she was being watched, and feared for her life. One of the many items of evidence that the judge requested was the famous Alberica Filo della Torre diary, packed with the names of the great, the good and the merely famous, which according to Mr Marazzita, could contain dates and appointments on 10 July 1991 that have yet to be verified. News of the diary’s existence emerged following statements by a journalist who had managed to get hold of it. The investigating magistrate ordered the public prosecutor’s office to acquire hundreds of photos of the crime scene that had not been included in the case file. New biological examinations were also ordered for the gold Rolex, stopped at the time of the murder, which the contessa wore on her wrist. Mr Winston’s DNA is believed to be compatible with the sample from one of the objects taken from the bedroom where the murder was committed.
RISK OF FLIGHT – Mr Winston was detained in custody by the public prosecutor’s office in connection with investigations by assistant public prosecutor Pierfilippo Laviani and deputy Francesca Loy, in collaboration with Carabinieri from the operations unit and the RIS forensic unit. Mr Winston was taken into custody because of the risk of flight. The public prosecutor’s office will now have to apply for detention to be endorsed. Details will be made public at 11 am on Wednesday at a press conference to be held at the Rome public prosecutor’s office.
LAWYER – “I am very satisfied. What looks certain even now is that we did the right thing to ask for new DNA tests on the evidence. At last, we have some answers”. The comment came from Giuseppe Marazzita, the lawyer representing Alberica Filo della Torre’s husband, Pietro Mattei, when news was released about the detention of Filipino Winston Manuel Reves. He added: “We did well to object to requests for dismissal made years ago on the basis of technical examinations we view as being flawed and inadequate. Luckily, we found an investigating magistrate who listened to our position”.
THE CRIME – Contessa Alberica Filo Della Torre was 42 when she was found dead in her room at her Olgiata villa. Initial investigations indicated that she had been strangled and hit on the head with a clog. The first inquiry, which ended with the case being dismissed and a separate inquiry being initiated to enable criminal proceedings to be re-opened, saw the contessa’s housekeeper’s son Roberto Iacono and Manuel Winston in the frame because, according to the public prosecutor’s office, they had motives for resentment towards the victim. Mr Iacono, who was said to have psychological issues, was upset that his mother had been fired. According to witnesses, she was constantly asking the contessa for loans or higher pay. Mr Winston, who had to return a one million-lire loan to the contessa, was seen arguing heatedly with her on several occasions. In Pietro Mattei’s view, the investigation has always been incomplete and there have been too many omissions regarding some of the laboratory tests. Items of evidence indicated by Mr Mattei as worthy of further investigation are the victim’s Rolex watch and other objects, including Mr Winston’s and Mr Iacono’s trousers, the contessa’s bedsheet, the clog with which she was struck and various articles of underwear.
English translation by Giles Watson
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