Monaco is set to host a prestigious event. It risks finding itself at the heart of an international embarrassment. This May 8th, the Principality is hosting an event billed as a celebration of fashion, featuring designer Giannina Azar, Latin American culture, and Miss Universe. On paper, the event has everything going for it: haute couture, beauty queens, high-society guests, a renowned designer, spectacular gowns, crowns, luxury, a yacht, Monaco as a backdrop, and international glamour. A perfect setup! But behind this idyllic picture, two guests are about to plunge the event into a much darker dimension: Fátima Bosch, the illegitimate Miss Universe 2025, and Raúl Rocha, co-owner of Miss Universe wanted by Mexican justice.
Raúl Rocha, embroiled in a scandal linked to Mexican cartels and organized crime, spotted on a yacht in Monaco
The arrival in Monaco of Raúl Rocha, recently spotted on the yacht Euphoria II with Miss Universe, raises serious questions. His arrival in the Principality comes at a time when his name is linked to particularly serious accusations in Mexico. The alleged offenses involve organized crime, money laundering, arms trafficking, fuel smuggling, and drug trafficking. The co-owner of Miss Universe admitted to Mexican courts that he had financially participated in two fuel smuggling operations, investing significant sums in huachicol (a type of smuggling) before recouping his investment with profits. He presents this involvement as limited and financial, but the report by El País paints a much more serious picture: an alleged network of fuel, arms, and money laundering operations, with connections suggested to cartels, in which Rocha is said to have played a financial role.
This scandal has even tarnished the Mexican presidency. For Claudia Sheinbaum, the affair is politically toxic: after defending Fátima Bosch's victory and asking that it not be confused with the investigation targeting Raúl Rocha, the Mexican president finds herself facing an embarrassing situation. At issue, in particular, are her close ties to the governor of Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha Moya, whom she supported, just as she did Raúl Rocha, but who was forced to resign due to his links with the cartels. Her image and credibility, as well as those of her "ally" Raúl Rocha, are more fragile than ever.
Monaco, the scene of a Miss Universe operation to buy back respectability
In Monaco, this backdrop changes everything: Miss Universe arrives not only with a contested crown, but also with a co-owner whose own confessions to the courts and accusations reported in Mexico transform the gala into an international reputational scandal. These scandals are incompatible with the polished image Miss Universe seeks to project on Monaco's red carpets. It is precisely for this reason that her announced presence in Monaco raises serious questions in a Principality where issues of reputation, finance, compliance, and anti-money laundering are particularly sensitive.
His presence in Monaco therefore legitimately raises a question: is the Principality offering a stage of respectability to a leader at the heart of a legal and media storm?
The pattern is well-known. When an organization or individual goes through a crisis, they seek out settings to make people forget the scandals. Monaco is one such setting. The Principality offers what few places can: prestige, luxury, international visibility, a vast network of contacts, institutional aura, and an image of respectability. Being seen in Monaco is never insignificant. This is precisely what makes this gala so sensitive, and one wonders how the Principality, so meticulous about its reputation, can endorse such an image-washing operation. Miss Universe arrives in Monaco with a contested winner and a president facing very serious accusations. Beauty, fashion, philanthropy, and the Monegasque setting cannot erase all of this. The question is therefore perfectly legitimate: Is Monaco hosting a prestigious event, or is it lending its setting to an image rehabilitation campaign?
Fatima Bosch: an illegitimate Miss Universe
The presence of Fátima Bosch adds another layer to the unease. Her election as Miss Universe 2025 was marred by cheating and publicly contested by several jury members, notably Omar Harfouch, who resigned to denounce, with supporting evidence, a lack of transparency, a completely rigged and predetermined competition, all against a backdrop of conflicts of interest and dubious connections between Raúl Rocha and organized crime. In this scandalous context, Miss Universe's arrival in Monaco cannot be presented as a simple celebration of beauty or fashion. It looks more like a "rebranding" operation to show that the organization continues to exist, despite the scandals surrounding it. The intended message seems clear: Miss Universe wants to remain in the spotlight and redeem itself. The problem is that this spotlight only serves to further illuminate what the organization might prefer to keep hidden.
Who pays for the red carpet?
This is the most important, and perhaps the most embarrassing, question: who is actually paying for this Miss Universe pageant in Monaco? An event of this scale isn't just a venue, a few dresses, and a handful of guests. It involves international travel, luxury accommodations, production crews, security, communications, public relations, private dinners, high-end services, yachts, and organized transportation. The question of funding is therefore crucial.
When the co-owner of Miss Universe is announced in the Principality while his name is linked to accusations of money laundering and trafficking, it becomes crucial to know who pays, who invites, who hosts, who benefits from the event, and who agrees to have their name associated with it. The real question, therefore, is: who pays for this red carpet? A haute couture gown cannot conceal shady dealings. A yacht cannot transform a legal controversy into mere socializing. A crown cannot erase the memory of cheating. The Principality has built part of its image on prestige and integrity. Vigilance is therefore essential.
Prince Albert II announced: the risk of a princely embarrassment
The matter becomes even more sensitive with the possible presence of Prince Albert II, as some have suggested. This hypothesis alone underscores the urgent need for clarification surrounding this highly dubious gala. Is Prince Albert II aware of the shady aspects of the event in which he is being implicated? Can he risk having his image and prestige used to whitewash the image (or even something else) of an organization in crisis and desperately seeking respectability? Nothing is less certain, and one cannot imagine for a single second that His Serene Highness would endorse such a thing…
The red carpet under surveillance
The event organizers are now being held accountable. What is at stake in Monaco goes far beyond the evening itself. The event will reveal whether the Principality accepts being used as a stage for respectability by an organization discredited by legal scandals, or whether it demands a minimum of transparency from those who seek its prestige. In a case involving accusations of money laundering, alleged trafficking, a controversial competition, a yacht, haute couture, philanthropy, and the princely image, communication cannot replace transparency. Smiles and gowns will not suffice…
Fátima Bosch in Monaco (left)
