Macchiarini claims the synthetic trachea didn't shorten Tuulik's life or the lives of any of his other patients, or cause their deaths. Instead, he says their underlying health conditions were fatal and may have been a factor in their deaths. His work, if controversial, is also groundbreaking. Moreover, the Italian investigator found records showing that despite planning a wedding with Alexander for so long, Macchiarini was still legally married. In the course of that operation, the surgeons had nicked her trachea. I was just giddy with happiness. Um, maybe I felt like that at some point when I was really young and I had a, had a crush in school, I don't know, but I don't, I don't ever remember feeling like that. She won a slew of honors for her work with the greatest in television reporting, including two Emmys. Then, one morning, she read in The New York Times that Macchiarini's colleagues at the Karolinska Institute had accused him of scientific misconduct and filed a complaint with the university. He was dying and Macchiarini became someone Alexander could lean on. Her purpose for doing so is simple; to not only move on but also build a safe community for survivors like her a place where theres self-healing through sharing and unconditional support. Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter. [00:32:33] Matthew Christopher: (laugh) She said to me as I um, she said to me, "Well, Matthew, (or team)" she goes, "Well, I'm getting married by the Pope." It does so much unnecessary damage. [00:24:45] Bo Lindquist: I mean he basically said that he was going to revolutionize medicine, and, and not just invent a new kind of a trachea or a new kind of transplant, but actually revolutionize surgery. My friends and my family all adored him. Benita Alexander-Noel was born on April 21, 1966 in Australia. We were sitting together on the, on the plane, and I just sort of started pouring my heart out to him, and he was a very good friend. She found out exactly what hed lied about - and she said it was extensive. I don't know if I was nervous. Paolo Macchiarini was born in Switzerland to Italian parents and has spoken of having had a difficult childhood in Basel, where by his own account he felt like a perpetual outsider in school. And he's Italian, and he wanted this big Catholic wedding in Italy. I mean most 8-year-olds will change their minds, you know, many times, but I never changed. And I made it to this point. In fact, he told me that Paolo would often leave their interview to engage in some frantic texting with someone, probably a lover, probably Benita. Alexander said Macchiarini later called her, telling her he was at the Vatican and that he had some big news: Not only did he find someone willing to perform the ceremony but he said it was his own patient, the pope himself. They said that the patient was doing fine and that's not true: One of his lungs was completely obliterated from a chronic infection.". But Benita's intuition overtook her and she hired a private investigator to look into the surreal wedding. 5. [00:25:22] Bob: And while Paolo loves to talk about his work, he isn't always charming. The latter refers to his misconduct that led to the deaths of several patients. In 2015, she served as a co-executive producer on Breaking the Silence, which featured DWTS pro Cheryl Burke, and Counting On alums Jessa Seewald and Jill Duggar Dillard. I loved everything about it, and to be sort of plunging into the unknown, even though I felt very secure with Paolo, happily in love. Spouse John Noel, Edson Jeune, Macchiarini, Source of Wealth Acting and Producing career. He was put on trial after his patients reportedly suffered bodily harm during his experimental surgeries but he always denied any criminal wrongdoing. And so that meant me quitting my job at NBC and leaving New York and pulling my daughter out of her very difficult to get into private school in New York. And so I thought, okay, maybe its not as crazy as it, as it sounds. She was even more stunned when she began to realize that so much of what Macchiarini had told her about his personal and professional life was a lie. Along the way he promises her a fairy tale wedding to be officiated by the Pope. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's Standard Terms and Conditions in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy. [00:41:50] Benita: The day after I quit my job, I got an email from a colleague and the headline just said, "The Pope." And he's getting noticed in the medical field. We have somebody who has been brave enough to share something thats already humiliating and devastating. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? She couldn't do anything that a normal child could do. It really affects you. I truly was for a period there, happier than I think I've ever been. Benita Alexander is an award-winning investigative television producer, showrunner, correspondent, director, writer and narrator who has worked on a wide variety of film and TV programs. She said she'd never fantasized about a "Prince Charming." You know, "What did he do this time? In June 2013, they flew to Venice for what Alexander called an incredibly romantic weekend.. Once you confirm that subscription, you will regularly Paolo showers Benita with affection. Documentary producer Benita Alexander thought it was love when her job introduced her to internationally renowned surgeon Paolo Macchiarini. Benita was also the Co-Executive Producer and narrator for the 2016 TLC documentary, "Breaking the Silence," about sexual abuse. [00:04:22] Bob: And you had a happy ending. You can also manage your communication preferences by updating your account at anytime. I think he needs to be behind bars. "I put it all in a message. [00:42:58] Bob: If you have been targeted by a scam or fraud, you are not alone. [00:34:59] Bob: When you went to her house, was Paolo there? Three months later, the Karolinska Institute ruled that while Macchiarini did not always rise to the level of its standards, he had not committed scientific misconduct. Benita met and married a fellow reporter, John Noel, and moved with him to New York, where they welcomed their daughter in 2003. By the time he performed the artificial trachea transplant on Cetir, he had already performed the same procedure on four other patients. "I was doing a story about regenerative medicine and his name kept coming up," Benita, a New York resident, said on the podcast Dr Death: Miracle Man. Macchiarini remains married to Emanuela Pecchia, his wife of nearly 30 years. After relocating to New York, Benita worked for NBC and was featured in NBC's documentary "A Leap of Faith" in 2013. But there was something, yeah, something happened between us the, the moment we met. Quack, quack, quack. ABC News reported that Macchiarini has never spoken publicly about his relationship with Benita. [00:04:39] Benita: I think one of the things that can make you a good journalist if, is if you're able to put yourself in the other person's shoes, and if you're able to sympathize with them and empathize them and really try to understand what it is they're going through. [00:21:22] Benita: Tragically, Hannah passed away, which was, um, just devastating. He is one of the world's leading cardio thoracic surgeons. Alexander had already sent invitations to her closed ones. Cetir died waiting for the lung transplant she desperately needed. By what name was He Lied About Everything (2018) officially released in Canada in English? [00:31:04] Matthew Christopher: I'm a couture wedding gown designer. [00:36:51] Matthew Christopher: Yeah, yes, oh my gosh. I mean it got to the point where he loved to surprise me, everywhere we went. In October, 2020, her story was the premiere episode of ABC's primetime series, "The Con," hosted by Whoopi Goldberg. "I have some really high-powered clients," she said he told her. He was listed as one of . [00:32:14] Matthew Christopher: She actually came to my private showroom which was really cool, and um, I had my whole staff there, and we had to sign a nondisclosure agreement, and I was like, what is going on here? [00:14:35] Benita: The thing about Paolo is he's a very good listener, and we, after a shoot sometimes, would go out to dinner, or we would be in a group of people talking. receive communications related to AARP volunteering. This is totally different. Star-Studded Wedding Becomes Brides Worst Nightmare, Part 1, Journalist exposes her celebrity fianc, part 2, Computer hacker drains couple's life savings. Her multiple awards include: Edward R. Murrow, 2 Emmys, 7 Emmy nominations, Alfred I. duPont-Columbia, NABJ and Sigma Delta Chi. And it was very difficult for us um, with the story because, you know, we had all hoped for one of these happy endings, you know, this was, the hope was to do a two-hour special, and at the end of it, you know, Hannah's home in South Korea, running around the backyard with her, her big sister, and you know, being a happy toddler as, as she should have been all along, and you know, Hannah was the most vibrant little girl. It was eight months later when they became properly engaged after Macchiarini presented her with a $100K ring. This was, I didn't even know what to say. I mean I'm going to achieve this; you know what I mean? And I open the door, and there's a trail of rose petals leading up to the bed, and it says "I love you" in rose petals on the bed. I mean, I got this sort of chill through my body, like there was some sort of electric spark, and I remember, in my head, thinking, 'What the hell was that?'". [00:13:10] Benita: When I met Dr. Paolo Macchiarini, and when I was working on this story, I was at an extremely vulnerable place in my life. I just, I felt like somebody punched me in the stomach. [00:26:36] Benita: Paolo wanted a big, Catholic wedding. It has led to extensive reform work internally at KI in order to improve and clarify a number of regulations and routines.". He Lied About Everything is the true tale of the love affair between award-winning investigative producer Benita Alexander, and world-renowned surgeon Paolo Macchiarini. To see all content on The Sun, please use the Site Map. How to, what do we do now? Claiming he was in demand. They live in the same area outside Florence. How do we, how do we tell this story? The emotions of the moment overwhelm her. And he was putting artificial tracheas, the windpipe, into patients. Alexander was in head over heels for Macchiarini. "I talked to my editors and we started thinking, 'Well, let's just keep pulling on this thread. [00:25:58] Bo Lindquist: I think he liked the challenge. It wasnt surprising being a surgeon in Italy. [00:06:46] Benita: And he was, as I said, called the super surgeon, and he was the pioneer in this field. Just like, oh, the dance dress was crazy. [00:10:16] Bob: And when they meet, well Benita is stunned by what happens. 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