Ferragni had risked jail if found guilty of alleged fraud involving charity endorsement deals.
A court in Milan on Wednesday acquitted Italian fashion influencer Chiara Ferragni on charges of alleged fraud in a case involving the sale of charity Christmas cakes and Easter eggs.
Ferragni, 38, had faced accusations of aggravated fraud in which she was accused of profiting handsomely from charity drives involving the sale of a “designer” pandoro, produced by Balocco, and chocolate Easter eggs produced by Dolci Preziosi.
Prosecutors in the fast-track, closed-door hearing had sought a jail sentence of one year and eight months for Ferragni, in a high-profile case dubbed ‘Pandorogate’ by the Italian media.
Ferragni has always denied any wrongdoing and has vowed to prove her innocence, telling reporters outside the court on Wednesday: “The nightmare is over”.
I’m very happy to get my life back on track” – Ferragni said – “These were very tough years, I had faith in justice, and justice has been done.”
Background
The prosecution claimed that Ferragni misled consumers into thinking that their purchases of a pricey pandoro cake would help to fund medical equipment for a children’s hospital in Turin.
The pink pandoro went on sale in Italy in 2022 with a price tag of €9, more than double the normal retail price of unbranded cakes made by confectioner Balocco.
In December 2023, Italy’s antitrust authority fined Ferragni more than €1 million for “unfair commericial practices” in relation to the branded pandoro.
The competition authority also handed a fine of €420,000 to Balocco which it found had made a one-off donation of €50,000 to the hospital months in advance of the pandoro going on the market.
The authority also found that two Ferragni-controlled companies received promotional fees of around €1 million, none of which was handed over to the children’s hospital.
At the time, Ferragni responded with an emotional video in which she apologised for the pandoro case, admitting to a “communication error” but claiming it was a “mistake made in good faith”.
In the wake of the controversy, Ferragni donated €1 million to the Regina Margherita children’s hospital in Turin and vowed to keep business and charity “completely separate” in the future.
Easter eggs
A similar case involving Ferragni-branded Easter eggs in support of I Bambini delle Fate, an association that helps children with autism, allegedly earned the social media star far in excess of the amount that was given to the charitable cause.
After reaching an agreement with the antitrust authority, Ferragni paid the Bambini delle Fate association €1.2 million.
Photo credit: chery75 / Shutterstock.com
