Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of murder and abuse. Reader discretion is advised.
Victoria Vetri, also popularly known as Angela Dorian, was the 1968 Playmate of the Year and allegedly shot her husband, Bruce Rathgeb in the back in 2010. Vetri was a popular television and movie actress during the 1960s and 70s. In 1968, she played her most famous role as a recovering heroin addict in the film Rosemary’s Baby. Apart from the Roman Polanski film, When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth was another major movie in Vetri’s filmography.
According to Fox News, authorities claimed that Victoria Vetri and Bruce Rathgeb were engaged in a domestic dispute. She then got hold of a handgun and shot Rathgeb at least once in the upper body. When the police arrived at the crime scene, she reportedly told them that a drug dealer had shot Bruse Rathgeb and escaped. He was immediately taken to the hospital and his left arm was severely injured.
Victoria Vetri and Bruce Rathgeb had been married for 25 years when she accused him of cheating on October 16, 2010, while they were at their West Hollywood apartment, CBS News reported. Rathgeb reportedly left the apartment. He was waiting for the elevator outside the apartment when he saw her about 8 feet away. She allegedly aimed and shot at him before a burning sensation overcame him and she could smell the gunpowder.
He also claimed that the former Playboy Playmate stuffed his mouth with a plastic bag and returned to the apartment. Bruce Rathgeb denied all allegations of cheating on his wife. He maintained that the couple had been living apart for a few months before the shooting. He also denied involvement in any discussion relating to drugs or a drug dealer.
The Playboy Murders: What was Victoria Vetri charged with?
While Bruce Rathgeb remained hospitalized at the Cedars Sinai Hospital for days after the shooting, Victoria Vetri was charged with attempting to kill her husband and was held under arrest in lieu of a $1.5 million bond, CNN reported. She was arrested immediately after authorities discovered the crime scene on October 16, 2010, and entered a plea of not guilty.
Victoria Vetri was charged with an attempt to murder. While the defense requested a reduced charge of assault with a deadly weapon, the court dismissed the request and the Playboy Playmate was tried for an attempt to kill Bruce Rathgeb. Michael Place, the couple’s neighbor, testified that he had heard a loud noise before he found Rathgeb injured. He also noticed a plastic bag and a bullet casing near the victim.
In 2011, Victoria Vetri admitted to using a firearm and causing great bodily harm to her husband, CBS News reported. The accused was held guilty of the attempt to murder and was sentenced to 9 years in state prison. She was additionally asked to pay an amount of $70,000 to California’s victim restitution fund. According to Bruce Rathgeb, the bullet was too close to his heart and was difficult to remove.
The Bunny and Charles Manson is an episode of the Playboy Murders’ Season 2 that will be aired on ID on Monday, January 29, at 10 p.m. ET. The episode will be looking into the aftermath of Sharon Tate’s murder and the consequences that led to Victoria Vetri’s fall from fame. Tate was a close friend of hers and was murdered in 1969. That was just a year after Victoria was announced the Playboy Playmate of the Year in 1968.
