Princess Beatrice's ex-boyfriend dies in Miami hotel room

Liuzzo died from a suspected overdose in a Miami hotel in February, as sources claimed to The Sun he struggled with drugs and racked up large gambling debts.

Beatrice, 35, found out soon after her mother Sarah Ferguson’s skin cancer diagnosis.

Liuzzo had many run-ins with the law, including an alleged cocaine possession.

Police found Liuzzo after being called to a room at the citizenM Miami Worldcenter hotel at 3.22pm on February 7, according to Officer Michael Vega of the Miami Police Department.

The time of death was given as 3.34pm.

The cause has not been disclosed due to Florida records law.

Officer Vega told The Sun: “It was investigated as an overdose death. The investigation is open and ongoing.”

The death certificate says Liuzzo was working as an art industry consultant and never married.

He was listed as living at an apartment building near the hotel.

His body was flown back to Long Island, New York, where Liuzzo grew up, and the funeral was held on February 16.

A pal of Liuzzo admitted: “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.

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

“He was always borrowing money to pay loans. It became a vicious cycle.”

Liuzzo and Beatrice, six years his junior, started dating in 2005 but kept it under wraps until he joined her family’s ski holiday to Switzerland in 2006.

Sarah Ferguson backed her daughter’s romance, saying: “We all have our own journeys and have to learn our way but Beatrice is a sensible girl, soon to be 18, with many friends including Paolo.”

In 2006, Beatrice publicly ended the romance.

Paolo later said: “If it came out that me and Bea were dating, it wouldn’t be good for her image or Sarah’s so everyone was trying to keep our relationship a secret.”