>> Last week Hermes had to deal with a belligerent heir, and this week, Gucci is caught up in a spy scandal — anyone want to guess what drama will round out the three?

The brand's offices in Florence, Milan, and Rome were searched this week as part of an investigation of illegal access to the Italian Ministry of Interior's data bank.  Last year, Carlo Del Bo, Gucci's former head of security, was arrested for illicitly obtaining information to help the brand fight conterfeits.  A Gucci spokesman said that the brand was unaware of Del Bo's methods to unearth the information and is "fully cooperating with the authorities."

Gucci is the latest target to be pulled into into the ongoing "Spy Story" scandal; Alessandra Facchinetti, former head of womenswear at Gucci — who hasn't had a great year already — was revealed in July to be a target of another wiretapping scandal connected to Del Bo's arrest.  Her phone conversations were tapped illegally for unclear reasons.
*image: source