Cayetano Santos Godino: Argentina's 'Big-Eared Midget'
- Jun 18
- 3 min read
Cayetano Santos Godino, known in Argentina as 'El Petiso Orejudo', was a young serial killer in early twentieth-century Buenos Aires whose crimes against children horrified the nation. This account avoids graphic detail out of respect for the young victims.
Godino was himself a child and adolescent when he committed his crimes, and his case became one of the most studied and disturbing in Argentine criminal history, raising profound questions about juvenile violence.
Key Facts at a Glance
Full name: Cayetano Santos Godino
Born: 1896, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Known as: El Petiso Orejudo
Setting: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Active: early 1900s-1912
Outcome: Imprisoned; died in custody in 1944
A Disturbed Childhood
Godino came from a poor immigrant family in Buenos Aires and showed deeply troubling behaviour from an early age. His childhood was marked by hardship, and warning signs of his dangerous tendencies appeared early.
These signs, including acts of cruelty, were noted but not effectively addressed, and his behaviour escalated as he grew older.
Crimes Against Children
Over a period in the early twentieth century, Godino targeted young children in Buenos Aires, committing a series of attacks that culminated in murder. The youth of both the perpetrator and the victims made the case extraordinarily disturbing.
Out of respect for the young victims, the details are not recounted here. The crimes spread fear among families across the city.
A City in Fear
As the attacks on children continued, panic grew in Buenos Aires, and the search for the offender intensified. The vulnerability of the victims made the crimes especially terrifying to the public.
The case dominated public attention and put pressure on the authorities to identify and stop whoever was responsible for the attacks.
Capture
Godino was eventually identified and arrested, and the revelation that the offender was himself a youth shocked Argentine society. His capture brought the series of crimes to an end.
Once in custody, he was connected to the attacks, and the case became the subject of intense study and debate.
A Subject of Study
Because of his youth and the nature of his crimes, Godino became an important and troubling case study for criminologists and psychologists of the era. His case raised difficult questions about the origins of violent behaviour in the young.
The early study of his case reflected a growing interest in understanding the roots of criminality, even as the crimes themselves defied easy explanation.
Years in Custody
Godino spent the rest of his life in custody, his case periodically returning to public attention. He died in confinement in 1944, decades after his crimes.
His long incarceration reflected both the gravity of his offences and the judgement that he could not safely be released.
A Landmark in Argentine Crime History
The case of El Petiso Orejudo remains one of the most notorious in Argentine history, frequently revisited in accounts of the country's most disturbing crimes. Its combination of youthful perpetrator and child victims gave it a unique and unsettling character.
It endures as a foundational case in Argentine criminology and as a sombre example of how early warning signs, left unaddressed, can have devastating consequences.
A Cautionary Tale
Godino's story serves as a cautionary tale about the importance of recognising and responding to disturbed behaviour in children before it escalates. The missed warning signs of his early years loom large in retrospect.
While nothing can excuse the harm he caused, the case underscores the value of early intervention and the protection of vulnerable children, themes that remain relevant today.
A Foundational Study in Criminology
Because of the extraordinary circumstances of his case, Godino became one of the earliest and most examined subjects in Argentine criminology. Researchers of the period sought to understand what could drive such crimes in someone so young.
The case helped shape early thinking about the roots of violent behaviour and the importance of recognising warning signs in childhood. It remains a reference point in the country's criminal history and a sombre example of the consequences when such signs go unaddressed.
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