Princess Beatrice's ex-boyfriend found dead in hotel of suspected drug overdose after 'amassing big gambling debts'

Princess Beatrice's ex-boyfriend has been found dead in a hotel room aged 41, of a suspected drug overdose.

Paolo Liuzzo, who started dating Beatrice in 2005, when she was just 17, died in the Florida city of Miami earlier this year.

Police were called to a room at the four-star citizenM Miami Worldcenter hotel at 3.22pm on February 7.

Beatrice is said to have been told not long after hearing the news that her mother Sarah Ferguson had been diagnosed with skin cancer.

Art consultant Mr Liuzzo's cause of death was not disclosed under local law.

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A police officer told the Sun that the investigation into Mr Liuzzo's death, which is still going, is focusing on whether it was an overdose.

A friend told the paper that Mr Liuzzo "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.

"It was a very fast lifestyle and we all feared it would catch up with him eventually."

The friend added that Mr Liuzzo had been borrowing to pay off other debts, sparking a "vicious cycle".

Mr Liuzzo, who was charged with assault and battery over the death of a student in Massachusetts before he knew Beatrice, was six years older than her.

Their relationship became public after he joined her and the family on a skiing trip in Verbier, Switzerland.

But the romance ended when he had to go back to the US for breaking his probation conditions in relation to the student's death.

Mr Liuzzo later said: "I wasn't sure I wanted to get in that deep with Bea.

"I loved her but I wasn't in love with her."

Beatrice, 35, is now married to Eduardo Mapelli Mozzi, a property developer, with whom she has a daughter, Siena.

Those feeling distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK