Veleno: The Town of Lost Children

On a night in 1997, police burst into the home where Federico Scotta lives with his family. The authorities order the immediate removal of his two children, ages 3 years and 6 months. Based on the testimony of a 7-year old boy, Federico is accused of being part of a network of paedophiles and of having sexually abused his daughter and other children.

The network of paedophiles spreads like wildfire. Numerous children confess that they were forced to participate in satanic rituals in the area’s cemeteries. The authorities intervene and take away Lorena Morselli’s four children, while the father and brothers are arrested. The residents of the community are shocked by the news that the alleged head of the sect is the town priest.

The trial begins in Modena. The testimonies of the children and the medico-legal reports prove the members of the sect guilty. All of the accused are convicted in first instance and receive lengthy prison sentences. The media stops talking about the case while the children grow up in new families. It will be many years before a journalist, Pablo Trincia, begins to investigate the case.

After a long investigation, Pablo Trincia’s podcast is released in October 2017, shedding doubt on the entire case thanks to new and alarming discoveries. The media hype is revived and once again the entire community is disrupted. In opposition to Pablo’s version of events, a committee made up of the foster families and the now-adult children is formed.

New and disturbing revelations confirm Trincia’s theory. Meanwhile, in the nearby town of Bibbiano, a shocking case erupts: various social workers end up under investigation for having removed children from their families. Scotta glimpses the chance for a revision of the sentences. After 20 years, is it still possible to rebuild a parent-child relationship?