British man found dead alongside ‘seriously injured’ woman in Florence hotel

A British man has been found dead at a hotel in Florence alongside a woman suffering from serious injuries.

According to local media reports, the 40-year-old man was found dead in his room at the four-star Hotel Continentale on Saturday morning after staff alerted the police.

He is reported to have arrived in the Italian city on Friday night with the 43-year-old woman, thought to be his partner, who is being treated at the city’s Careggi hospital.

Local police and forensic teams were seen at the luxury hotel on Saturday, which is located a short walk away from the Ponte Vecchio in the historic centre of Florence, and investigations are reportedly under way.

When approached by the PA news agency, hotel staff were unable to provide any information regarding the incident.

A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) spokesperson said: “We are in touch with the Italian police following the death of a British man in Florence.”

A police source told the Daily Mail: "The people involved are both British and at the moment we are working on two theories an erotic game that went wrong or some sort of domestic argument, but the general direction is that of an erotic game.

"The man was found with a series of cuts, bruises and other injuries on his body and so was the woman, although she was more seriously hurt and the man appears to have had some sort of seizure.

"There is blood in the room and the forensic teams are working there at the moment while the woman has been taken to hospital for treatment.

"Her current condition is serious but she is stable and her injuries are not life-threatening. We hope to question her at some point in the next few hours."