The horrifying decline of Princess Beatrice's ex Paolo Liuzzo is revealed after he was found dead 'of overdose' in Miami hotel aged just 41

Princess Beatrice's 'first love' Paolo Liuzzo was found dead inside a Miami hotel room of a suspected overdose aged 41  after a long battle with drugs, gambling and violence. 

Beatrice, 35, dated the socialite from 2005, when she was just 17 years old and he was 24, to 2006. Despite the age gap her parents, Sarah Ferguson and disgraced Prince Andrew, approved of the relationship. 

The princess was forced to end their whirlwind romance after Liuzzo was found to have violated bail conditions he was under for charges related to the death of a student in New York.  

In recent years, Liuzzo has been living a 'very fast lifestyle,' according to his close friend. Insiders have revealed that Liuzzo struggled with gambling as well as drugs, and claim he had racked up debts with loan sharks, according to The Sun.

'Paolo was not doing great on a personal level. He loved to party and gamble. He began using a lot of pharmaceutical drugs but that later led to cocaine and harder drugs,' a friend claimed. 

Princess Beatrice's 'first love' Paolo Liuzzo (left) was found dead inside a Miami hotel room of a suspected overdose aged 41 after a long battle with drugs, gambling and violence

In recent years, Liuzzo has been living a 'very fast lifestyle,' according to his close friend. Insiders have revealed that Liuzzo struggled with gambling as well as drugs, and claimed he had racked up debts with loan sharks

Liuzzo is pictured here with an apparent former girlfriend Arianna Pappas, who captioned the photo 'Beso Beach with my Babe! @paolo.liuzzo'

It was during his college days that Liuzzo had his first serious run-in with the law. In 2002, Liuzzo was convicted in connection with a fight that killed a fellow student, 19-year-old Jonathan R. Duchatellier

Liuzzo was constantly borrowing money to pay back loans - which became a vicious cycle, according to the friend. 

According to his Linkedin profile, Liuzzo was the owner of DNC Productions LLC. He moved from New York to South Florida and has been pictured attending art gallery events in Miami. 

Beatrice's ex-boyfriend originally hailed from Woodbury, New York, and grew up in Long Island. He attended College of the Holy Cross - a liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts.

It was during his college days that Liuzzo had his first serious run-in with the law. 

In 2002, Liuzzo was convicted in connection with a fight that killed a fellow student, 19-year-old Jonathan R. Duchatellier. 

Reports of the May 6 fight claimed that the men involved, including Duchatellier and Liuzzo, had been drinking alcohol on the night of the off-campus brawl.

Liuzzo was initially charged with manslaughter but later pleaded guilty to a charge of assault and battery. His co-defendant, Daniel K. Clark, did the same and manslaughter charges against them both were dismissed. They were both placed on probation for three years.

Several years later, in 2005, it was announced that Liuzzo, who was referred to as a 'U.S. socialite,' and Beatrice had been caught up in a secret romance for months. 

Liuzzo and Beatrice met through mutual friends and began dating in July 2005, despite knowing about his shady past. 

Friends of Beatrice said that Paolo was 'Bea's first real boyfriend,' and revealed that he had been living in London for several months, but that Beatrice planned to go to university in America so the pair could continue their romance. 

'Despite his past, Paolo is very well brought up and treats Bea with incredible respect and kindness,' the friend said. 

A palace source said Liuzzo was 'very open about his background when he and Beatrice became close.'

'He is very honest about what happened to him, and he knows that nothing he will ever do will make up for it. But he is a wonderful, thoughtful person, and they all like him very much,' the source told the paper at the time. 

Liuzzo was initially charged with manslaughter but later pleaded guilty to a charge of assault and battery

Liuzzo shared this picture of himself with a friend on his personal Facebook account in 2023

Liuzzo was found dead on February 7 in a room at the citizenM Miami Worldcenter hotel at 3.22pm, according to officer Michael Vega, of the Miami Police Department

Despite a seven year age difference and Liuzzo's questionable history, Prince Andrew and his wife Sarah Ferguson approved of the pair's relationship. 

The couple were spotted at a skiing retreat at the exclusive Verbier resort in Switzerland, alongside Beatrice's parents. However, it subsequently emerged that Liuzzo had flouted the conditions of his probation to holiday with the Queen's granddaughter and her family in Switzerland.

As a result he was hauled back to the U.S. where he had his three-year probation extended by the courts as punishment, forcing Beatrice to end the fledgling romance in 2006. 

Beatrice was reportedly heartbroken when their romance ended and she returned to Goldsmiths, which is part of the University of London. 

The following year, he embarrassed the Royal Family by claiming marijuana was smoked in the presence of Beatrice, her sister Eugenie and their mother, Sarah Ferguson, while they were on holiday in Jamaica during their relationship. 

He was among a party of eight including the Princesses who went on a ten-day holiday to the Caribbean. 

The self-described playboy also confessed to cheating on Beatrice during their relationship - and said she had wanted to introduce him to the Queen.

Princess Beatrice is pictured with her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi 

Despite a seven year age difference and Liuzzo's questionable history, Prince Andrew and his wife Sarah Ferguson (pictured left with her daughter Beatrice) approved of the pair's relationship

His relationship with the law didn't get any better as years went by, and he was arrested on a trip down under in 2009 over a string of offenses including possessing cocaine. 

The arrest took place on the Gold Coast on September 27, 2009, and came after he crashed an $90,000 black Audi hire car into traffic lights.

The then-27-year-old also failed to pay for accommodation and restaurant bills at Conrad Jupiters casino.

Australian law enforcement charged Liuzzo with fraud, unlawful use of a motor vehicle, possessing two grams of cocaine and driving without due care and attention. Liuzzo pleaded guilty and was fined $5,000. 

Liuzzo was found dead on February 7 in a room at the citizenM Miami Worldcenter hotel at 3.22pm, according to officer Michael Vega, of the Miami Police Department.

The cause of death has not officially been reported, but officer Vega said: 'It was investigated as an overdose death. The investigation is open and ongoing.'

Liuzzo's death certificate revealed that he had been working as a consultant in the art industry and had never married. 

His body was transported to Long Island, New York, where he grew up and a funeral was held on February 16.