Employee at Grosvenor Casino Murders Colleague and Fiancee with a Sledgehammer
In the UK, an Italian casino employee named Andrea Cardinale, 22, killed two of his fellow countrymen in a severe schizophrenic episode, as he believed they had placed curses on him.
The incident occurred before Christmas 2022, when Cardinale, a former collaborator of Antonio Calabro, 26, and Francesca Di Dio, brutally attacked them in their home with a knife and a sledgehammer.
Cardinale and Calabro had met while studying as dealers in their hometown of Sicily and later decided to move to the UK to work at the Grosvenor Casino in Stockton-on-Tees. The pair shared an apartment in Stockton, located in northeastern England.
The court was informed that Cardinale had been dismissed from his job at the casino in September 2022 due to poor work performance and bizarre behavior. Medical professionals evaluated him following his arrest and discovered he had been grappling with undiagnosed paranoid schizophrenia.
As his mental health deteriorated, his psychotic condition became so extreme that his role in the killings was deemed negligible, according to Donald Grubin, a forensic psychologist from Newcastle University.
Crime Scene Description
In the early hours of December 21, Cardinale entered Calabro's bedroom and smashed his friend's skull with the sledgehammer before stabbing him to death.
Di Dio, who was visiting her beloved fiancé for the holidays, managed to flee to safety and run up the stairs before being attacked, as per the prosecution's statement. Cardinale then went to a nearby gas station and bought diesel fuel and a lighter, attempting to ignite the property but ultimately failing.
Upon discovering the brutal crime scene, Cardinale's father flew into the UK to check on his son. After failing to comprehend how to contact British police, he contacted Italian authorities for help instead. Local police arrived at the scene and apprehended Cardinale later that day, as they spotted him wandering aimlessly through the streets of Stockton.
Investigators found Cardinale had searched online for "how to remove the evil eye," "voodoo," and "how to make a bomb."
Question for Answers
Cardinale was charged with murder but pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter due to diminished responsibility. Defense lawyer Peter Makepeace clarified that while Cardinale denied this act, he understood his friend's grieving family was desperate for answers: "In this case, the response appears to be a terrifying and acute illness that led to him, albeit minimally, responsible for the fatalities of his closest friend."
Judge Paul Watson KC imposed an indefinite hospital order on Cardinale.
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Source: www.casino.org
