Beheaded Body of Missing Romanian Woman Found in Suitcase Near Abandoned Farmhouse in Tuscany
The gruesome discovery of a missing woman’s beheaded body inside a suitcase near an abandoned farmhouse has sent shockwaves through Tuscany and beyond. The body, identified as that of 30-year-old Maria Denisa Paun, a Romanian national, was found near the town of Montecatini Terme, approximately 25 miles west of Florence, Italy.
Paun had been missing since May 15 after she disappeared from her residence in Prato, a city also located in Tuscany. Her remains were discovered nearly three weeks later, finally bringing an end to growing speculation and public anxiety surrounding her mysterious disappearance.
Italian authorities confirmed that Paun’s body had been concealed inside a garbage bag and stuffed into a white suitcase, which was then dumped in a remote area close to an abandoned farmhouse. In a shocking turn, police arrested a suspect, 32-year-old Vasile Frumuzache—also a Romanian national—who has since confessed to the brutal murder.
Frumuzache, a local security guard, allegedly told investigators that he had met Paun through a dating app. Paun, who reportedly worked as an escort, met Frumuzache at a hotel. Following their encounter, she allegedly demanded payment of approximately €10,500 (around $11,450) in exchange for her silence, threatening to expose the affair to his wife.
According to his confession, Frumuzache claimed, “She was blackmailing me, that’s why I killed her. When I told her that I was married, she said she could reach my wife.” He went on to describe how he strangled Paun, decapitated her with a knife, and attempted to burn her severed head with gasoline before concealing her remains.
Surveillance footage obtained from the hotel where the two met shows Frumuzache arriving around 10:50 p.m. on May 15, carrying a black bag. A few hours later, around 1 a.m., he was seen leaving the hotel with a white suitcase believed to belong to Paun, which he loaded into his Volkswagen Golf. That same suitcase was later recovered at the crime scene containing her body.
The breakthrough in the investigation came after authorities analyzed GPS tracking data from a device installed in Frumuzache’s car by his insurance company. The data provided a detailed map of his movements and ultimately led police to the abandoned farmhouse where Paun’s remains were found.
The case has gripped national headlines in Italy and raised widespread concern, initially fueling fears that Paun might have been a victim of organized crime. Her murder, now revealed to be the result of a personal dispute that escalated into violence, has brought the tragic mystery to a close, though the brutality of the crime continues to horrify the public.