The detectives who worked closely with their Italian counterparts to help bring a brutal murderer to justice have welcomed his sentence.
Andrea Cardinale used a sledgehammer and a knife to kill a couple in their North East flat just before Christmas last year.
It was the killer’s own father's quick thinking when he alerted the police in his homeland after he visited the Thornaby flat following concerns about his son’s mental health.
The Sicilian, who does not speak English, was unsure of how to contact British police so called home and told them to alert Cleveland Police.
Within thirty minutes of the initial call, police were at the flat on Thornaby Road where they discovered the bodies of Antonino ‘Nino’ Calabro and Fransesca Di Dio.
The killer was caught and arrested when police spotted him walking the streets in Stockton.
Speaking after the sentencing hearing at Teesside Crown Court, Detective Chief Inspector Peter Carr, from Cleveland Police Homicide and Major Enquiry Team (HMET), said: “Andrea Cardinale has accepted responsibility for the killings of Antonino ‘Nino’ Calabro and Fransesca Di Dio.
“Today, Nino and Francesca’s families can hopefully take some comfort from the fact that Cardinale will now be detained in a place where he can not cause any harm to anyone else.
“Cardinale has been deemed to have been suffering from significant mental impairment at the time of the killings and he will now receive the treatment that he requires in a secure hospital.
“These tragedies have been horrific for both families to endure and will have a lasting impact upon them for the rest of their lives. I would like to praise both for their patience and support throughout the investigation and the judicial process.
“I would also like to thank the officers and staff within the Homicide and Major Enquiry Team who worked on this complex investigation; and our partners who we worked with closely within the British Embassy, Italian Consulate, Interpol, the Crown Prosecution Service, and Italian Police.
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“Whilst we can never bring back Nino and Francesca, we hope that today’s outcome can provide some form of comfort and our thoughts remain with both of their families at this extremely difficult time.”
Cardinale admitted killing the couple when he pleaded guilty to manslaughter due to diminished responsibility.
He was detained indefinitely in a high security mental health unit.
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