The international scientific community is in mourning following the brutal murder of Italian molecular biologist Alessandro Coatti, whose dismembered remains were discovered near Santa Marta, Colombia. Coatti, 42, had recently resigned from his position at the Royal Society of Biology (RSB) in the UK to volunteer in Ecuador and travel across South America.
His former colleagues at the RSB, where he worked for nearly a decade, described him as “passionate and dedicated.” He began his tenure at the RSB as a science policy officer and was later promoted to senior science policy officer. During his time there, he led significant work in animal science, biomedical innovation, and ethics in research. In June 2022, Coatti represented the RSB before the UK Parliament to discuss regulating genetic technologies.
In a public statement, the RSB said: “Ale was funny, warm, intelligent, loved by everyone he worked with, and will be deeply missed by all who knew and worked with him. Our thoughts and best wishes go out to his friends and family at this truly awful time.”
Coatti, who held a Master’s degree from University College London, was last seen in Santa Marta on the night of April 3. He had checked into a hotel in the city’s historic center and reportedly asked for directions to Minca, a nearby mountain village popular with travelers. That night, he left the hotel in a taxi. Three days later, his dismembered body was found in two suitcases – one abandoned on a rural trail in the Bureche area and the other floating in the Manzanares River. Children playing near a stream made the gruesome discovery.
Authorities identified him through a wristband from the hotel where he was staying. Investigators from Colombia’s elite police and prosecutor’s units, along with counterparts from Italy, are now working to solve the case. Two main lines of inquiry have emerged: one linked to Coatti’s social activities, and another suggesting the crime could be a warning to Italian mafia groups attempting to gain a foothold in Colombia.
Local media reported that his parents, Gabriele and Sandra, both retired, were waiting for him at their home in Longastrino, near Ferrara and Ravenna in northern Italy. Professor Tommaso Pizzorusso, a neuroscientist based in Pisa, told Il Roma newspaper: “I’m in shock. Alessandro was an idealist, a dreamer. I just can’t explain this horror.”
The Colombian newspaper El Tiempo reported that Coatti enjoyed attending electronic music events and that certain aspects of social life may be relevant to the criminal investigation. The brutal methods of this crime – dismemberment – are often employed by illegal armed groups in Colombia to instill fear among vulnerable populations.
This murder comes just three weeks after the arrest in the port city of Cartagena of Emanuele Gregorini, alias “Dollarino,” a leader of the Lombard mafia system. Authorities believe Italian organized crime groups are attempting to establish connections with Colombian criminal networks such as the Clan del Golfo (Gulf Clan) and Los Costeños, for the lucrative drug trafficking routes along the Caribbean coast, including the Sierra Nevada mountain range where Coatti’s body was discovered.
A Colombian investigator told El Tiempo that “we have no evidence that Coatti had links to any criminal groups. But given the current context and his nationality, it’s possible the perpetrators believed he was in Santa Marta for reasons other than tourism.”
Santa Marta, the oldest city in South America, is currently celebrating the 500th anniversary of its founding and is expecting around 1.7 million tourists this year. The old port city is also the main entry point to the Tayrona National Park and small community of Minca, popular with foreigners for its stunning views of the coastal mountain range and for its birdwatching. The Sierra Nevada with its “Lost City” and rugged coastline is also coveted by violent drug trafficking cartels and paramilitary forces for the lucrative cocaine routes that lead from the interior to the smuggling ports of La Guajira peninsula.
In response to the murder, Santa Marta’s Mayor, Carlos Pinedo Cuello, announced a reward of 50 million pesos (approx. USD 12,500) for information leading to the identification of those responsible. “I have ordered the full coordination of all institutional resources to clarify the death of Italian citizen Alessandro Coatti. Criminals must know that Santa Marta has no place for crime,” said the mayor.
