Who is Patrizia Gucci, who had her husband killed, and is played by Lady Gaga in “House Of Gucci”

Today Patrizia Reggiani leads a modest life. After spending almost 20 years locked in San Vittore prison, Patrizia now lives in Milan with her elderly mother, who does she say berates her daily and makes him regret his days behind bars. But Patrizia carries with her the memory of a past life of unimaginable wealth, luxury and endless euphoria. Because she is not just Patrizia Reggiani; it’s Patrizia Reggiani Gucci, the ex-wife of the heir to the Gucci family, a man she killed.

Before being played by Lady Gaga in “House of Gucci”, Patrizia was married to Maurizio Gucci for 12 years. The fashionable couple had two daughters, Allegra and Alessandra, and traveled the world. From Milan to New York, from Switzerland to Connecticut, the couple lived fast and spent money faster. Their relationship turned sour, however, when Maurizio found himself embroiled in a family dispute and decided to sell the family business. Soon after, he announced that he was going on a last minute “business trip” – with his young mistress. He filed for divorce a little after.

Patrizia has sworn revenge. When Maurizio offered her a divorce settlement of $ 3 million plus $ 850,000 a year, she dismissed it as “just a bowl of lentils,” according to The Guardian. Money was more to Patrizia than just the means to buy expensive clothes and fine jewelry; he represented independence. The Gucci brand had become her whole identity and she was furious at the idea of ​​losing her sense of self in this divorce.

With her agency moving away, Patrizia saw only one option: to eliminate the one person standing in the way of her happiness. She turned to her longtime psychic, Giuseppina “Pina” Auriemma, for advice. Giuseppina suggested that he attempt a murder. A hitman was hired the next day.

March 27, 1995 seemed like an ordinary day for Maurizio Gucci. He arrived in his private office in Milan, as he had done hundreds of times before. He was almost at the door when gunshots rang out. Hit with four balls, Maurizio collapses in the entrance. He died in the arms of his porter.

But Pina quickly sold Patrizia to the Italian police, and a bizarre murder trial followed soon after. He captivated Italy, the fashion industry and the world in general. Patrizia – now known as Black Widow – was sentenced to 26 years in prison.

Patrizia’s jail time was even stranger than her trial. “I slept a lot,” she reminded the Guardian. “I took care of my plants. I took care of Bambi, my pet ferret. Patrizia did quite well during her time in prison, although the same cannot be said of Bambi; Patrizia’s beloved ferret died when an inmate accidentally sat on him.

After 14 years, Patrizia was granted early release on condition that she found a job. She chose to stay in prison, explaining to her lawyer: “I have never worked in my life and I have no plans to start now.” Two years later, however, Patrizia decided that was enough. It was time to get out of prison and return to the real world, even if it was less fabulous than when she left it 16 years ago.

She returned to the fashion world organizing expensive shopping trips for paparazzi, working as a consultant at a luxury jewelry company, parading around Paris Fashion Week with her parrot on her shoulder and rubbing generally the nose of the world in its shameless existence.

Her daring can be summed up in an exchange she had with a paparazzi soon after her release. When asked why she hired a hitman to kill Maurizio and didn’t just kill him herself, Stylecaster Reports that she said, “My eyesight is not that good, I didn’t want to miss it.”