The Beasts of Satan

One of the most gruesome crimes that shocked the whole of Italy was the ritual murders committed by the Beasts of Satan. In the eerie darkness of the night of January 17, 1998, a forest near Milan became the scene of an unimaginable crime. Under a full moon, two young lovers, 16-year-old Fabio Tollis and his 19-year-old girlfriend Chiara Marino, were brutally murdered. The murderers of the couple were, ironically, Fabio’s bandmates from the heavy metal band “Beasts of Satan,” who had driven with the couple to the woods of Somma Lombardo, northwest of Milan, on that Saturday in January. Their diabolical plan was to kill Chiara, whom they regarded as a reincarnation of Mary, in a satanic ritual. When the lovers got out of the car in the remote forest, band members Andrea Volpe and Nicola Sapone attacked Chiara with a knife. Fabio bravely tried to save his girlfriend, but his best friend Mario Maccione, who was only called the medium because he allegedly communicated with the devil while high on drugs, tried to prevent this by beating him with a hammer. During the ritual, the Slayer album “Hell Awaits” played at full volume. Fabio, an aspiring singer, was a fan of the band and had only recently joined them to swim in their wake of dark sounds. But when Chiara expressed concerns about leaving the circle, disaster struck. According to eyewitnesses, it all happened during a drug binge, under the influence of cocaine and heroin, mixed with sex, heavy metal music, and the eerie dance on the graves of their victims. Before the tragedy, no one had any idea what the night would bring. Michele, Fabio’s father, received a strange phone call from his son on the evening of his disappearance. Michele Tollis could not forget the strange questions his son asked during that conversation. It sounded as if Fabio was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. He whispered and seemed intimidated. It later came to light that Nicola Sapone, the leader of the gang, had forced him to do so. Michele, worried and suspicious, immediately made his way to the Midnight Pub, the meeting place for heavy metal fans, where his son Fabio and his friends often hung out. However, all he found there was a wall of lies and excuses that made him even more uneasy. “They’re just gone,” Fabio’s friends said, and the bartender could only confirm that Fabio and Chiara had indeed left, but had not returned. The search for the whereabouts of the couple was unsuccessful; both seemed to have vanished into thin air. The police considered Michele’s persistence annoying and were convinced that his son and Chiara had simply eloped. But Michele refused to be put off. He was determined to uncover the truth and began to explore the dark secrets of his son and his friends. His research led him to mysterious artifacts in Chiara’s room, including a goat’s head and black sheets. This evidence reinforced his concerns about the band’s occult tendencies. Michele became increasingly convinced that the band’s satanic rituals and excessive drug abuse were linked to his son’s disappearance. Six years passed during which Michele tirelessly searched for answers, but the police seemed uninterested. It was not until 2004, when the body of 27-year-old Mariangela Pezzotta was discovered under a mound of earth in a greenhouse in Golasecca, not far from Somma Lombardo, that light was shed on the mystery. The greenhouse was located next to a summer house belonging to Andrea Volpe and his 18-year-old fiancée Elisabetta Ballarin. When it was searched, the Carabinieri found a boa constrictor, which was probably kept as a pet. Andrea Volpe was arrested shortly afterwards, after wandering the streets drunk following an accident involving Mariangela’s mother’s car. It didn’t take long for the connection between Mariangela’s death and the murders of Fabio and Chiara to come to light. Andrea Volpe confessed that he had shot Mariangela during an argument because she knew about the double murder of Fabio and Chiara. He then called Nicola Sapone, who immediately rushed to the scene of the crime. There, they decided to bury Mariangela, who was still alive, not far from the scene of the crime. Andrea Volpe was then supposed to dispose of Mariangela’s car. However, after the incident with Mariangela, he and his fiancée had taken drugs, causing him to have an accident, which led to his arrest. Andrea Volpe finally confessed to the murders and named several accomplices, including Nicola Sapone. These revelations eventually led investigators to the remains of Fabio and Chiara, which were buried in a grave in the woods. Here, archaeologists found not only the bodies of the teenagers, but also a knife believed to have been used in Chiara’s murder. The gruesome truth became increasingly clear. After the murder, the perpetrators had thrown their victims into a hole and returned to dance on their graves while shouting macabre slogans: “Zombies, now you’re just zombies!” With Andrea Volpe’s confession and the evidence Michele Tollis had gathered, the authorities finally began to recognize the role of the Beasts of Satan. Over the years, Fabio’s father had documented the group’s brutal practices. Reports of grave robberies, drug excesses, and satanic rituals accompanied by heavy metal music were circulating. In addition, the band members are also said to have driven their drummer Andrea Bontade to suicide in September 1988 because he wanted to leave the band after the double murder. Under the influence of extreme drugs, he was forced to get into a car, where he drove at high speed into a wall. The band is also believed to be connected to the death of 28-year-old janitor Angelo Lombardo, who was acquainted with the band and was found burned alive in the cemetery in 1999. Another mysterious suicide is that of Andrea Ballarin, a childhood friend of Andrea Volpe, who hanged himself at his school. The subsequent court proceedings led to numerous convictions. Some members received life sentences. After the convictions, Michele Tollis expressed his feeling of finally having obtained justice for his son and his girlfriend when he said, “Today, justice has rewarded me.” However, in 2020, Andrea Volpe was released from prison after 16 years. But the shadows of the past and the horrors caused by the Beasts of Satan remain forever etched in the minds of those who witnessed this tragedy. The story of the Beasts of Satan is not only one of murder and occult practices, but also a reminder of how deeply the shadows of darkness can penetrate the souls of people, wrapped in the seductive illusion of heavy metal and freedom. The fascination with evil can sometimes become a dangerous obsession, and when the music stops, often only the echo of horror remains.