Tuesday, November 26, 2024

Italian influencer faces fraud investigation for misrepresenting charity profits

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Italian Instagram celebrity Chiara Ferragni is under investigation for fraud after allegedly falsely claiming proceeds from cake sales would benefit children with bone cancer.

The fashion designer, who has 29.5 million followers on Instagram, is backing Pandoro cake, a Christmas confectionery similar to panettone, in 2022, ostensibly to raise funds for children being treated in Turin hospitals. He is at the center of a scandal for what he did.

Last month, Italy’s competition watchdog found that consumers had been fooled into thinking their purchases of a Barocco special edition cake, which generated more than €1 million in revenue for Ferragni’s business, would go towards supporting charity.

Mr Ferragni’s lawyer, Giuseppe Iannaccone, confirmed to AFP on Tuesday that his client had been officially placed on a list related to a criminal case by the Milan public prosecutor’s office on suspicion of aggravated fraud.

This procedure does not imply guilt, but it does indicate sufficient evidence to subject the person to a preliminary investigation.

Milan prosecutors did not respond to AFP’s request for confirmation.

Ferragni, 36, said in a statement: “I am not worried because I have always acted with integrity and am confident that the investigation will reveal the facts.”

Antitrust authorities last month ordered two of Mr. Ferragni’s companies and Barocco for hinting to consumers that they would donate to charity by purchasing Pandoro Pink Christmas, which was released in November 2022. A fine of approximately 1.4 million euros (approximately 150 million yen) was imposed.

But in fact, Barocco, based in the south of Turin, had made a fixed donation of 50,000 euros to Regina Margherita Hospital a few months earlier.

– ‘Communication error’ –

Since launching her blog The Blonde Salad in 2009, Ferragni has built a business empire that Forbes magazine estimates is worth $8 million a year, launching her own brands and selling everything from Evian water and Nespresso to Dior perfume. He has won expensive endorsement contracts for all kinds of products, including . Louis Vuitton heels.

However, the Pandoro scandal, which has been making headlines in Italian newspapers for weeks, has dealt a huge blow to the A-lister’s reputation and her business activities.

La Repubblica newspaper reported last week that Coca-Cola had shelved a TV appearance with the star scheduled for January, while Italian eyeglasses maker Safilo closed a licensing deal with Ferragni in December after being warned by regulators. It was reported that it had been discontinued.

Last month, Ferragni posted a tearful apology on Instagram, admitting that he had made a “miscommunication” by combining his charity work with his commercial activities, and adding that he would donate €1 million directly to the hospital. .

She also said she would appeal the competition watchdog’s fine and, if it was reduced, she would donate the amount beyond her €1 million donation.

But Mr. Ferragni’s legal troubles may not be over yet, with newspapers alleging that Mr. Ferragni advertises chocolate Easter eggs and whose sales support children’s charities, and that prosecutors believe the same It is reported that a separate investigation has been launched into the situation.

Il Fatt Quotidiano reported last month that the candy maker donated 36,000 euros to charity and that Mr. Ferragni received 500,000 euros and 700,000 euros in 2021 and 2022 as compensation for his promotion.

(Information provided by AFP)



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