Some crimes are so heartbreaking or shocking that they change laws, change society, or even

earn the label Crime of the Century.

But the stories that made headlines in decades past aren't necessarily remembered today.

I'm Amber Hunt, a journalist and author, and in each episode of this show, I'll examine a case that's maybe lesser known today, but was huge when it happened.

This is Crimes of the Centuries.

Music This is Crimes of the Centuries. There's a lot about this next case that is confusing.

The crimes themselves are horrible, but that's not the confusing part.

It's the bizarre and sometimes malicious actions, as well as the random inactions of police and prosecutors involved,

that I blame for most of my bewilderment.

That and the fact that I'm not Italian.

I once got married in Italy, but that's for another podcast.

Even so, I don't read or speak Italian, which I wish I did,

because that would probably spare me some one-star reviews hating on my pronunciations this episode, for which I apologize in advance.

More than that, though, it would have helped a lot in reading the original documents in this case.

And maybe it would have helped me better understand the difference between the police and

the Kiribaniari and why you need two agencies that do basically the same thing, but manage to

always get in each other's way.

And that's the bottom line.

Not being Italian meant that unraveling the crimes assigned to the mysterious

il monster de Ference, or as we'll call them, the monster of Florence, proved trying because

the customs of that country differ from ours, as does their legal system. It also means that I'm

not sure who to believe when authorities start blaming each other.

...