Transwoman in Italian Political Scandal Found Murdered
A transwoman known only as Brenda was found murdered in her burned apartment. Brenda had been filmed having sex with a high-ranking Italian politician; the subsequent scandal ended the politician’s career.
Gov. Piero Mazzaro had presided over the Lazio region of Italy, of which the city of Rome is part. Mazzaro was caught on film having sexual contact and sharing drugs with Brenda, who had been employed as a prostitute, according to a Nov. 23 article at Advocate.com.
The episode came to light when police officers allegedly tried to blackmail Mazzaro with the video; Mazzaro resigned last Oct. 24. Neither he nor Brenda were charged with any crime in connection with the video.
Brenda’s burned body was discovered on Nov. 20. She lived in a basement apartment "in a neighborhood frequented by transsexual prostitutes," according to Reuters. Marrazzo was a political activist in his youth who worked as a prominent TV journalist before becoming a center-left politician.
The article said that about two weeks earlier, Brenda had reported an attack in which her cell phone was stolen.
