Former Chairman Anne Jakrajutatip arrested
On November 25, a court in Bangkok (Thailand) issued an arrest warrant for Jakapong Anne Jakrajutatip - former CEO and co-owner of Miss Universe (74-year-old pageant) after she was absent from the sentencing of a corporate bond fraud lawsuit, despite being released on bail.
According to the records, a plastic surgeon accused Anne and JKN Global Group of hiding their difficult financial situation, calling for bond investment, causing him a loss of about 30 million baht (nearly 1 million USD). Meanwhile, JKN is carrying a debt of about 3 billion baht and must enter the restructuring process.
Before that, Anne attracted attention when she bought the Miss Universe copyright for about 20 million USD, becoming the first transgender woman to own this contest, then suddenly withdrew from all executive positions in June 2025, but was still a major shareholder.
President Raul Rocha Cantu prosecuted in Mexico
While the former leader is involved in a scandal in Thailand, the current owner and co-owner of Miss Universe - Mexican businessman Raul Rocha Cantu was also prosecuted by the Mexican prosecution for a series of serious crimes, including drug trafficking, arms trafficking and fuel smuggling.
Rocha was charged with being involved in a criminal network that organized and was in charge of illegal fuel transportation lines from Guatemala to Mexico, disguised as proxy businesses, and showed signs of supplying weapons to a number of criminal groups, according to the prosecutor's report.
These accusations appeared at the right time when Miss Universe 2025 was faced with a series of fraud accusations. Former judge - musician Omar Harfouch announced his withdrawal from the judges, saying that there was a "secret council" that had already selected the contestant to the Top 30 and accused Rocha of interfering to get the Mexico representative crowned for business relations with the new Miss's father.
Candidates give up titles, audiences question transparency
Not only at the leadership level, the crisis of confidence is also expressed in the candidates' reactions. Olivia Yace - representative of the Ivorian Sea, 4th runner-up of Miss Universe 2025 has announced the abandonment of the title of Miss Universe Africa & Oceania, cutting off all cooperation with the organizing committee, citing the need to be loyal to the values of respect, dignity and equal opportunities.
The Miss commune d'Ivoire Committee later issued a statement confirming the refund of the ribbon, saying that this year's season has seen "many unusual things" compared to more than 20 years of being attached to the system.
Some other contestants such as representatives of Guadeloupe, Haiti... also took turns speaking out about the chaotic organization, weak logistics and suspicion of biased contestants from some areas, further aggravating the image of the contest in the eyes of the international public.
Controversy over Huong Giang and the beyond The Crown
For Vietnamese audiences, the focus of attention is the journey of Miss Huong Giang - representing Vietnam at Miss Universe 2025. The beauty stopped before the Top 30, but controversy broke out strongly around the beyond beyond The Crown when she had the third choice (233,30 votes) but did not make it into the final Top 3, although the initial announcement format said that 50% of the scores came from the audience's paid votes.
Miss Universe Vietnam President Valentin Tran has sent an official dispatch to the Miss Universe Organization, requesting clarification on the scoring method and the reason for the difference in results compared to the voting data.
Continuous legal turmoil surrounding former CEO Anne Jakrajutatip and Chairman Raul Rocha Cantu, along with complaints from contestants, judges and national copyright holders, shows that Miss Universe 2025 is not only facing a temporary media crisis, but also a lack of financial governance, a suspected lack of transparency in the judging mechanism and many inadequacies in the organization.
