Rhianna Benson
The fiancé of Jocelyn Wildenstein - the woman nicknamed 'Catwoman' due to her cat-like appearance - has issued a statement following her shock death last week.
Speaking to TMZ, Lloyd Klein described his loss as 'extremely sad', and revealed how she previously revealed how she'd like to be handled once she'd died.
For those unfamiliar with Wildenstein, the 84-year-old Swiss socialite started hitting headlines in the late 90s after allegedly starting to undergo cosmetic procedures to achieve the aesthetic of a lynx.
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Despite making blatant alterations to her looks, she ceaselessly denied ever having gone under the knife - except for one November 2024 interview she did with The Sun, where she admitted to having botox.
Wildenstein's husband Klein confirmed her unexpected passing last week with a statement released by AFP, revealing she'd died whilst taking a nap on New Year's Eve (31 December).
"It is with heavy heart and with great sadness that Mr Lloyd Klein announces the unexpected death of his beloved fiancée and longtime companion Jocelyne Wildenstein," a statement read.
"Mrs Wildenstein died peacefully in her sleep in the late afternoon of December 31st, 2024 in her... suite in Paris where the couple had taken temporary residence since August of 2024."
Klein later told PEOPLE Magazine that her phlebitis - inflammation of a vein near the surface of the skin - had caused her legs to swell up in the night, blocking an artery and preventing oxygen from travelling to the brain.
She died of a pulmonary embolism.
"And we were having a nap and when I wake up, I said, 'Jocelyn, we have to wake up, we have to get dressed,' and she was cold and she was dead."
Today, Klein has also lifted the lid on Wildenstein's wishes for her remains, revealing that his bride-to-be will be laid to rest in Kenya alongside that of her mother and father's on the grounds of her ranch.
He added to TMZ, however, that her life would firstly be remembered in a 'small and private' ceremony in Paris - where the couple have lived for the last two decades.
He will then take her ashes to the ranch in Kenya, as that was one of her favourite places.
The couple had gotten engaged in 2017 - just shy of two decades since Wildenstein's messy 1999 divorce from prolific art dealer Alec N. Wildenstein.
She leaves behind two children - a daughter named Diane and a son named Alec Jr from her first marriage.