The 40-year-old Briton is found dead and a woman seriously injured “after the erotic game went tragically wrong” at a luxury Florence hotel that costs £350 a night
- EXCLUSIVE: The lovers’ ‘bedroom antics’ took a tragic turn when the 40-year-old man had a ‘fit’
- A 43-year-old woman believed to be his wife was taken to hospital with cuts and bruises
- This £350 a night four star hotel is just minutes from Florence’s attractions
- Police: “There is blood in the room and the forensic teams are working there”
A Briton has been found dead and a woman seriously injured at a swanky Italian hotel after an alleged erotic game went tragically wrong, police believe.
The 40-year-old man, whose name was not released, was found dead in his room next to a 43-year-old woman believed to be his wife, who was covered with cuts and bruises.
Employees at the four-star Hotel Continentale, a stone’s throw from the famous Ponte Vecchio bridge in the Renaissance city of Florence, called the police after the woman asked a maid for help.
Paramedics rushed to the hotel and the woman was taken to the city’s Careggi Hospital, where she was said to be in serious but stable condition.
The £350 a night Hotel Continentale (terrace pictured) was the scene of the tragic accident
The couple only arrived at the hotel on Friday night and the alarm was raised early on Saturday morning.
A police source told MailOnline: “The people involved are both British and at the moment we are working on two theories, an erotic game gone wrong or some sort of domestic dispute, but the general direction is that of an erotic game.
“The man was found with a number of cuts, bruises and other injuries to his body, as was the woman, although she was more seriously injured and the man appeared to be having some sort of seizure.
The man died shortly before Florence’s landmark, the Ponte Vecchio on the Arno River
“There is blood in the room and forensic teams are working in there right now while the woman was taken to the hospital for treatment.
“Her current condition is serious, but she is stable and her injuries are not life-threatening. We hope to interview her sometime in the next few hours.”
The hotel is just a few minutes’ walk from the heart of the city, popular with British holidaymakers. Prince Charles and former Prime Minister Tony Blair are regular visitors.
Guidebooks describe the £350-a-night hotel as “frisky chic” and it has a rooftop bar and spa and is popular with “honeymooners and those looking for a romantic weekend away”.
The picturesque Italian city is known for its beautiful bridges and Renaissance architecture
A source said: “The woman had raised the alarm after a maid knocked on the door, but some of the guests had already called reception to report screams and banging coming from the room.”
Television news footage showed several police cars and an ambulance parked outside the hotel while forensic teams entered and exited the foyer while tourists from the nearby Ponte Vecchio bridge looked on.
Local judge Ester Nocera has launched an inquiry into the tragedy and was also seen entering the hotel and speaking to forensic teams.
