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Featuring Scholarly Research, Writing, and Media at St. Mary’s University

September 25, 2018

The road to murder: Gianni Versace’s killer

On July 15, 1997 Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace’s life abruptly ended with a gunshot on the doorstep of his Miami beach mansion. Many of us know and love the Italian fashion line known as Versace, but most people aren’t aware of the murder of its founder, Gianni Versace. His life was taken by a 27-year-old serial killer, Andrew Cunanan. Cunanan was a desperate man craving attention in all the wrong ways and found that attention by murdering men. 1

Gianni Versace and sister, victim of Andrew Cunanan’s murder spree | Courtesy of Wikipedia

Cunanan’s road to murdering Versace began when Cunanan was 19. His father abandoned his family and fled to the Philippines to avoid embezzlement charges. He left his wife and kids broke and alone. Cunanan followed his father to the Philippines. He later returned shocked at the poor conditions his father was living in. Cunanan started spiraling downward. He acted out in hopes of attention, and sometimes he resulted to violence. There was one incident where he shoved his mother so hard he dislocated her shoulder. Later observation of his behaviors suggested he suffered from antisocial personality disorder, which results in a lack of remorse for one’s actions. Cunanan craved any kind of attention he could get. He would do anything to get what he wanted. His spiraling life led him cross country on a murder spree killing without motivation except for the attention he would gain by doing so.2

In 1989 Cunanan dropped out of the University of California, San Diego and moved to the San Francisco area where took on many aliases such as Andrew DeSilva, Lieutenant Commander Andy Cummings, Drew Cunningham, and Curt Matthew Demaris. He made up lies about where his money came from, but, in many cases, he appeared wealthy because he befriended and lived off wealthy older men. He began playing parts in creating violent pornography.3 He was often found at parties and high class clubs, which was how he met the Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace at a San Francisco club. But this life of luxury didn’t last long.4  In 1996 Cunanan broke up with Norman Blachford, who at the time was financially supporting him and his expensive gay playboy lifestyle. Broke, Cunanan, maxed out his credit cards and sold drugs to survive. Not long after that, he got a one-way ticket to Minneapolis to visit a former lover.5

On April 27,1997 Andrew Cunanan committed his first murder, killing Jeffrey Trail, a former navy lieutenant who he had met at a bar in San Diego. His body was found two days later in David Madson’s apartment wrapped up in a rug after being beaten to death. Cunanan had been staying with Madson, one of his former lovers, at the time of Trail’s disappearance. Four days later the second murder was confirmed when David Madson’s body was discovered by fishermen near a lake north of Minneapolis on May 3,1997.6

Andrew Cunanan, wanted poster | Courtesy of Wikipedia Commons

With the car he stole from his second victim, Cunanan made his way to Chicago where he tortured 72-year-old Lee Miglin to death and left him bound in his house where Marilyn Miglin found her husband on May 4, 1997. Cunanan left Madson’s car in a garage a few blocks from Miglin’s home and murder spree, but not before he took all the money he could find in Miglin’s home and his jade green Lexus. Cunanan had no prior relations to Lee Miglin, and so he was believed to had been in the wrong place at the wrong time when Cunanan found him.7 After this murder, Cunanan was placed on the FBI’s Ten most wanted list.8 Still on the run, Cunanan made his way to New Jersey where he claimed his fourth victim by the name of William Reese. Reese was a custodian and Finn’s Point National Cemetery. He was found in the basement of his office with a gunshot wound to head. Cunanan then dumped the stolen Lexus nearby and drove off with Reese’s red pickup truck.9

Versace mansion, site of Andrew Cunanan’s last murder | Courtesy of Wikipedia

Now in Miami, Cunanan left his red pickup in plain sight a few blocks away from Gianni Versace’s mansion.10 After the 50-year-old fashion designer returned from his morning walk, he found Andrew Cunanan at his front steps. Cunanan then shot and killed Versace on July 15, 1997.11  To kill Versace, he used the same gun that he stole from his first victim, Jeffery Trail, and that he also used to murder David Madson and William Reese.12 Cunanan fled the scene and hid out in a nearby house boat to avoid being found. Eight days after the murder of his last victim, Gianni Versace, Andrew Cunanan was discovered by the houseboat’s owner, who then shot Cunanan.13 Andrew Cunanan looked for attention his whole life, and he found it in all the wrong ways, but just like his personality, he ended everything with a bang.

 

 

  1. Gary Indiana, Three Month Fever: The Andrew Cunanan Story (New York: Cliff Street Books, 1999).
  2. Evan Thomas, and Richard Alleman, “Facing death,” Newsweek (28 July 1997): 20.
  3. Wikipedia, 2018, s.v. “Andrew Cunanan.”
  4. Evan Thomas, and Richard Alleman, “Facing death,” Newsweek, (28 July 1997): 20.
  5. Wikipedia, 2018, s.v. “Andrew Cunanan.”
  6. John MCormick and Evan Thomas, “A lethal road trip: a gay socialite is suspected of taking off on a killing spree from Minnesota to Chicago to the Northeast,” Newsweek (19 May 1997): 52.
  7. John MCormick and Evan Thomas, “A lethal road trip: a gay socialite is suspected of taking off on a killing spree from Minnesota to Chicago to the Northeast,” Newsweek, (19 May 1997): 52.
  8. Andrew Phillips, “The Cunanan enigma: Versace’s killer takes his own life and leaves a mystery,” Maclean’s, (4 Aug. 1997): 32.
  9. John MCormick and Evan Thomas, “A lethal road trip: a gay socialite is suspected of taking off on a killing spree from Minnesota to Chicago to the Northeast,” Newsweek, (19 May 1997): 52.
  10. Evan Thomas, “End of the road,” Newsweek, (4 Aug. 1997): 22.
  11. Evan Thomas, and Richard Alleman, “Facing death,” Newsweek, (28 July 1997): 20.
  12. John MCormick and Evan Thomas, “A lethal road trip: a gay socialite is suspected of taking off on a killing spree from Minnesota to Chicago to the Northeast,” Newsweek, (19 May 1997): 52.
  13. Evan Thomas, “End of the road,” Newsweek, (4 Aug. 1997): 22.

Tags from the story

Andrew Cunanan

Crime

Gianni Versace

Murder

serial killer

Recent Comments

Rahni Hingoranee

The killing of Versace is something I was not aware of until just recently, and it is very saddening to know of yet another influential person having their life unfairly taken. The fact that this article focuses on Cunanan is disappointing because this killer is receiving the attention he wants but definitely does not deserve it. The life of him, nevertheless, is very interesting. The backstory behind serial killers tend to usually be in the same vein.

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29/09/2019

11:21 pm

Stephanie Cerda

Honestly, I had never heard about the murder of Versace until the show on Netflix came out, and I heard many people talking about it. Cunanam meeting Versace was unfortunate, and it makes you think about what other things he would have achieved if he hadn’t died so suddenly. It’s always interesting to hear about serial killer’s lives, and how at times their situations led to many of their actions and their personalities. I did hear that Cunanam’s father always preferred him over his other siblings, this could have fueled his narcissistic personality.

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11/11/2019

11:21 pm

Cynthia Perez

That was a pretty funny way to end the article and it was very clever. I didn’t know Versace was murdered, or honestly, I never knew much about him just of him. The way he was murdered is odd where Cunanan was simply desperate for attention he just went out and murdered plenty of people, but to kill Versace, someone who you would think had a lot of security is surprising. I’m glad he was found soon after and had been stopped from committing more crimes. He definitely could’ve gotten worse.

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11/11/2019

11:21 pm

Kimberly Parker

Before reading this article, I had never even heard of the name Versace, let alone the killing of Versace. The way that he was killed was very odd and surprising because Cunanan was literally just desperate for attention and so he went out and murdered a bunch of people. But to kill Versace, someone who you would think would have a lot of security, is just astonishing. I’m glad he was caught before he could’ve committed any more crimes

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11/11/2019

11:21 pm

Ana Cravioto Herrero

Great article! I was not aware that Gianni Versace was murdered, and especially in such a tragic way. It is very sad and it is insane the extent that crazy people will do in order to get attention. It is very interesting to learn about people’s past, and especially what drives people to insanity. Although Versace’s death was tragic, I am glad that he is still known as one of the best designers and he left a strong reputation in the fashion world.

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08/02/2020

11:21 pm

Juliana Montoya

I love the brand Versace and I had no idea about his murder. The fact that his murderer was a serial killer and that he had killed someone who was so iconic not just in the fashion industry but also in the world. The fact that his killer was on the Most Wanted List for the FBI shows that he was in fact really dangerous.

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08/03/2020

11:21 pm

Aracely Beltran

Andrew Cunanan had a troubling childhood but he could have sought attention in a different way. It was a very interesting article to read, I never knew how Gianni Versace had passed. So sad that without a reason, someone took his life. Thankfully his sister Donatella keeps his memory alive and kept his dream going for him. May he rest in peace.

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30/04/2020

11:21 pm

Victoria Hoggard

I didn’t know about the murder of Versace until this article. It’s crazy how Cunanan’s bad childhood and lack of attention turned into a killing spree of five men. It’s sad these men had to die because of someone so selfish and craving of attention in all the wrong ways.

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06/09/2020

11:21 pm

Nicholas Burch

It’s very scary to think that out of the hundreds of people you see every day in the street, one of them might be a crazy murderer. It’s very unfortunate that Cunanan didn’t have a reliable father growing up, but he didn’t have to use this as an excuse to do whatever he wanted. It’s important to recognize people’s backgrounds and be wary of their lifestyle choices because otherwise, it’s hard to tell when someone needs help. Cunanan’s personality disorder definitely played a part in his killing spree. If he would have had a positive influence in his life to help him cope with the disorder, Vercase might still be alive today.

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13/09/2020

11:21 pm

Lauren Castaneda

The killing of Gianni Versace is not only a tragedy for the designer himself, but the other lives lost a well. It’s interesting to see how far the Versace brand has come, and makes you wonder how much more the brand could’ve achieved with Gianni himself. Andrew’s personality disorder led to his downfall, and I believe the absence of his father who was someone he looked up to led him to every tragic events he committed.

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01/09/2021

11:21 pm

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