Chiara Ferragni, Italy’s most famous influencer, has been acquitted of criminal wrongdoing in a 2 million euro ($2.33 million) fraud case involving Christmas cakes, Easter eggs and children with cancer.
A Milan judge ruled Wednesday that aggravated fraud charges against Ferragni related to her promise to donate proceeds from the sale of a limited-edition Pandoro Christmas cake in a pink box to a childhood cancer charity cannot stand trial.
Prosecutors had asked for a 20-month prison sentence for the 38-year-old fashion and makeup influencer.
“Everything we’ve done has been done in good faith, but none of us have benefited,” she told the court during a hearing in November, admitting she had made a “miscommunication.”
Ferragni partnered with Italian confectionery company Barocco to sell a limited edition Pandoro “Pink Christmas” cake in Italy during the 2022 and 2023 Christmas seasons, followed by a deluxe “Dolci Preziosi” chocolate Easter egg. The marketing campaign suggested that proceeds would be donated to Turin’s Regina Margherita Children’s Hospital to support pediatric cancer research and increase sales.
Ferragni’s troubles began after investigative journalists revealed that Barocco donated 50,000 euros ($58,000) to a children’s hospital for cancer research before signing a sponsorship deal with Ferragni’s companies, and that the influencer was paid a commercial allowance of 1 million euros for sponsorship. It eventually transpired that the proceeds of the cake would not go to the hospital, but directly to Ferragni, in addition to the 1 million euros.
Neither Barocco nor the hospital have been charged with fraud, nor has Ferragni’s then-husband, rapper Federico Lucia (also known as Fedes). But the multi-million euro empire that Ferragni and Fedes had built quickly collapsed.
The couple ran a reality show, a popular podcast, a fashion brand, and even a pop-up store. They pushed for progressive politics, including on LGBTQ issues, angering both the powerful Catholic Church and right-wing politicians, including Giorgia Meloni, who came to power in 2022 after the scandal broke.
“True role models are not influencers who make a lot of money promoting expensive Panettoni purporting to be for charity,” Meloni said on stage at the 2023 Festival of Political Parties.
The scandal, known as “Pandrogate,” captivated the public and spurred the introduction of a law sponsored by Mr. Meloni to regulate influential people.
What started as a simple allegation of fraudulent advertising turned into a state affair, with Italy’s attorney general filing criminal charges against Ferragni in 2025, even though he and his company paid €3.4 million to the hospital, returned sponsorship fees to confectionery company Barocco, and refunded money to people who bought cakes and eggs.
As the story unfolds, Ferragni’s marriage falls apart, and Fedes, once the darling of Italy’s progressive political circles, embraces conservatism and now appears at Meloni meetings and other right-wing political arenas.
