Versace Murder Linked to Mafia Debts?

Gianni Versace’s murder has been linked to unpaid debts “with the Godfathers,” according to a new book. Author Giuseppe Di Bella, a former member of the Calabrian Mafia, Versace, who was murdered in 1997 by spree killer Andrew Cunanan, was being used by the gang’s godfather to launder money—and was murdered because of debts. As Di Bella explains: "There were rivers of money from drugs, extortion, protection rackets, loan sharking, mountains of money and it had to be made clean... bars, restaurants, property and luxury goods were used but also clean businesses like that of Versace." A member of an anti-Mafia organization in Rome says that a file has been opened on the claims. But the Versace family released a statement calling the allegations “false and shameful.” They added: “We reserve the right to protect the memory and reputation of Gianni Versace in civil and criminal courts.”