Luxury gifts worth €20,000 vanish after Rome handover
In Rome, a French heir of Moroccan origin thought he would get back the luxury gifts he had given his former partner. The jewelry disappeared after being handed to an intermediary posing as a lawyer, who later demanded an additional 500 euros.
A diamond-encrusted Cartier Tank watch, a Lady Dior bag, a Tiffany ring, and Chanel and Hermès shoes: the gifts given by a wealthy French heir of Moroccan origin to his former Italian partner were worth around 20,000 euros. After they separated, the woman agreed to return the items. A written agreement was drawn up to arrange their handover, reports La Repubblica in its November 4 edition.
The heir entrusted the task to a man who went by the name Nicola Carratelli, a lawyer who is genuinely registered with the bar in Cosenza, Calabria. The intermediary negotiated the agreement and signed the documents. He received 1,000 euros in fees, part by electronic payment and the rest in cash, handed to a woman sent to the Hotel de Russie, where the wealthy Frenchman was staying.
On 11 February 2025, the former partner went to the Westin Excelsior, another prestigious establishment in Rome, to return the gifts. She handed the jewelry and accessories to an intermediary tasked with collecting them. But the valuable items went in a very different direction. According to Italian investigators, they were taken to Calabria and disappeared.
The jewelry disappears, then shipping fees are demanded
After collecting his 1,000 euros, he demanded another 500 euros to ship the items to their owner. He even provided shipping documents that investigators consider to be false. The heir was thus asked once again to pay to recover the gifts his former partner had agreed to return.
Investigations by the Trastevere Carabinieri revealed another surprise. The man behind the lawyer’s name is believed to be Nicola Cannatelli, a 42-year-old from Vibo Valentia. The Rome prosecutor’s office suspects him of having assumed the identity of a genuine legal professional. The case, handled by prosecutor Stefano Opilio, involves five alleged offenses: illegally practicing law, identity theft, fraud, misappropriation and attempted extortion.
On Bladi.net : French Woman Jailed for Posing as Lawyer in Morocco
Nicola Cannatelli’s name had already appeared in a written question in the Italian Parliament, submitted on 10 June 2025 by MP Lorenzo Cesa. In that separate case, the lawmaker asked the government to verify reports concerning promises of public funding and possible impersonation of ministerial officials. The document had already named both Cannatelli and Carratelli, now at the center of the Rome investigation into the missing jewelry.
