2 men found dead at former Gianni Versace mansion on Miami Beach day before anniversary of designer’s death

Police are investigating after two bodies were found Wednesday at a South Florida hotel that was once the mansion of the late fashion designer Gianni Versace.

Miami Beach police and fire rescue responded Wednesday afternoon after housekeeping at The Villa Casa Casuarina found the dead men in a room, officials said. The scene was contained to the hotel room and detectives have launched a death investigation, police said.

Officials didn’t identify the men or how they died.

Thursday marks the 24th anniversary of Versace’s fatal shooting outside the South Beach landmark.

On the morning of July 15, 1997, Versace was returning home from the News Cafe, just a few blocks away from his Ocean Drive mansion. As Versace began to climb the steps to his home, serial killer Andrew Cunanan shot Versace in the head. Cunanan, who was suspected of killing four other men, killed himself on a houseboat eight days after Versace’s shooting.

At Versace’s funeral in Milan Italy a week after his death, celebrity mourners included Elton John, Georgio Armani, and Princess Diana, one month before her own death in Paris, CBS Miami reported.

Casa Casuarina was built in 1930 and purchased by Versace in 1992.  The mansion was sold in 2013 VM South Beach LLC which also owns the Hotel Victor next door to the former mansion.