Diamond Expert Tells Us Karoline Leavitt’s Flashy Engagement Ring Is Worth A Fortune

Andrew Harnik/Getty Image

Donald Trump’s Kayleigh McEnany wannabe press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, caused a stir at a press conference on February 12. Not only did Leavitt have a fake tan blunder, but she also showed off her impressive engagement ring. While holding up documents to present to the media, Leavitt unconsciously flashed her bling.

She first showed off the hardware when she got engaged to her husband, Nicholas Riccio, in December 2023. “I get to marry the man of my dreams. I feel SO overwhelmingly BLESSED. Thank you God,” Leavitt wrote in an Instagram post that included a photo of Riccio popping the question and a close-up of the pricey ring.

Following the press conference, Nicki Swift’s sister site The List reached out to diamond expert Mike Fried, CEO of The Diamond Pro, to find out the price tag on the expensive-looking piece. “Karoline’s ring appears to feature a 3-carat round diamond set on a four-prong Cathedral setting,” Fried said. As we assumed, her hefty bling did not come cheap.

“I estimate the value to be near $90,000, depending on the diamond’s quality,” the diamond expert added. Not only was Leavitt rocking a jaw-dropping rock — her wedding band substantially upped the value of her bejeweled ring finger. “Karoline is also wearing an eternity wedding band lined with diamonds, and I estimate the value could be up to $10,000,” Fried stated.

It should not come as a surprise that Riccio could afford to drop six figures on a ring, as he is a successful real estate investor. Not only has he forked over money for jewelry, but he has also contributed to Leavitt’s political career. While she has certainly benefitted from her marriage to the wealthy real estate investor, it has led to her taking heat online.

People troll Karoline Leavitt over her jewelry and her marriage age gap

@karolineleavitt/Instagram

Karoline Leavitt’s engagement ring isn’t her only piece of jewelry that has had people talking since she became Donald Trump’s press secretary. She wore a large Jesus cross pendant during a presser in January, which brought the ire of Democratic Congress member Dave Min. In response to a video clip of Leavitt falsely claiming that taxpayer funds were being sent to Gaza for condoms, he tweeted, “… she said while wearing a giant cross to let everyone know how pious and moral she is, even as she is so comfortable stating a bald faced lie to hundreds of millions of people.” In a follow-up tweet, he called Leavitt “a Fake Christian.”

His incendiary comment did not go unnoticed by Leavitt. “My Christian faith is a huge part of my life,” she told the New York Post on February 8. “My faith, my marriage, my family life — it’s everything to me.”

The trolling was not limited to her faith, as Leavitt has also taken heat for the sizable age gap she has with Nicholas Riccio — who is 32 years her senior. “Karoline Leavitt, 27, married a 60 year old Real Estate developer in 2023 and promptly had a child.

I’m sure his money had nothing to do with it,” one X user tweeted. The press secretary has also faced backlash on Instagram for posting pics of her and her baby, but not her husband. “Are you a single mom?? No pics of your baby daddy anywhere?” one Instagram user wrote.

In an attempt to calm the blowback, Leavitt explained on Instagram why she never posts Riccio. “He doesn’t have social media and he’s an introvert (complete opposite of me),” she wrote. “I respect his privacy on here.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt and her husband Nicholas Riccio’s 32 years age-gap relationship: A love story beyond age

At 27, Karoline Leavitt made history as the youngest White House press secretary under President Donald Trump. She is married to Nicholas Riccio, who is 32 years her senior. The couple met through a mutual friend and now have a son named Niko.

Photo: Karoline Leavitt / Instagram

The new White House press secretary for US President Donald Trump’s government, Karoline Leavitt, recently created history by becoming the youngest person to hold that position at the age of 27. However, it is not just her professional life, but also her personal life which is making the headlines.

After US President Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20, Karoline took the podium as the new press secretary at the White House for a press conference briefing on January 28. However, many people are amused by her maturity for her age. Just watched a few minutes of the White House press briefing. She’s sharp but very snarky and knows how to BS around a question too,” one person commented about her on X.

Karoline Claire Leavitt was born in Atkinson, New Hampshire, USA where she was raised a Roman Catholic, as per Wikipedia. In 2019, she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in communications and politics– thus becoming the first person in her immediate family to have a college degree, it further states.

As per reports, Karoline Leavitt is married to Nicholas Riccio, who is 32 years older than her. While Karoline Leavitt is 27 years old, her husband Nicholas Riccio is 59. Here’s more about the couple’s unique love story, which is much more beyond age.

How Karoline Leavitt met her husband Nicholas Riccio

A report by the Daily Mail suggests that Karoline Leavitt had shared that she met her husband Nicholas Riccio through their “mutual friend at a political function.” Their relationship was kept private until they got engaged in 2023. It was on Christmas 2023 when Karoline announced her engagement to Nicholas. In 2024, the couple got married in a private wedding ceremony and in the same year, they became parents to their son named Nicholas ‘Niko’ Robert.

While Karoline shared some pictures of her husband Nicholas, she had said that he was an introvert and so wasn’t quite active on social media. However, she has also said that she respects his privacy and he is the best dad and man she has ever met, as per reports.

Who is Nicholas Riccio

Nicholas works as a real estate developer. Reports suggest Riccio’s incredible journey: From homelessness at 18 to building a multimillion-dollar real estate empire in New England. He attended Plymouth State University and launched his real estate career in the early 2000s. While driving through Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, he noticed a deteriorating neighbourhood and saw an opportunity for transformation.

He began acquiring and renovating properties, and by 2015, his company, Riccio Enterprises LLC, owned several properties on the same street. His success extended beyond Hampton Beach, expanding from Boston to the White Mountains. Some of Riccio’s properties have also hosted political events, including a Women for Trump gathering which was attended by Karoline Leavitt.

Karoline Leavitt and Nicholas Riccio’s marriage brings age-gap relationships in the spotlight again. Some such popular celebrity couples in age-gap relationships include: Kareena Kapoor Khan-Saif Ali Khan, Dilip Kumar-Saira Banu, Priyanka Chopra-Nick Jonas, among others. While age-gap relationships have been there since decades, they are now being talked aboout more openly.

What are your views on age-gap relationships? Tell us in the comments section below.