Legal Issues

A Decade After His Death, Holocaust Survivor's $40 Mill. Fortune Is Still Unclaimed

12/18/2022

Holocaust survivor, Roman Blum, passed away in 2012 without a will, leaving behind a fortune worth approximately $40 million. The money remains unclaimed.

Now, a new prospective heir has emerged, leading to a legal battle over the Staten Island millionaire's financial legacy, which is dwindling by the year.

Credit: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

A recent article shares details about the ongoing situation. Richmond County, NY Public Administrator Edwina Frances Martin said, “I can say there’s about half of it left, probably.

The estate, which is overseen by Martin's office, has been diminished by taxes and attorney fees.

“Right now there are two parties who are claiming a right to Mr. Blum’s estate and it’s playing out in court,” Martin continued.

The latest candidate to who wants to inherit part of the fortune is Russian resident, Maxim Shimnyuk, 44. In January, Shimnyuk filed court documents attesting that he is the late real estate developer's great-grandson.

Blum made his millions by constructing and selling homes on Staten Island in the years after the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge was constructed in 1959.

According to Shimnyuk and his legal team, he is Blum's only biological descendant, and should therefore inherit everything that remains of the fortune. The Moscow resident attests that Blum married a woman named Ester Lajzerevna in Poland in 1937, and that they had a daughter named Hannah.

Hannah's daughter, Tatyana, was born in 1954. Per Shimnyuk's legal filings, Tatyana gave birth to him in October 1977. Allegedly Hannah passed away in 2001, and Tatyana in 2011.

The story, however, does not end here -- in fact it's just getting started, and it has the makings of a Hollywood movie.

Credit: Andres Lg/Getty Images

There is another claimant who attests that Blum died childless, but left everything to his long-lost lover in wartorn Warsaw in a secret, hidden will.

Blum reportedly met 20-year-old Helen Pietrucha in 1938, a year before the Nazi invasion. Although the two had planned to marry, World War II derailed their plans and they were ultimately separated from one another.

Before immigrating to New York in 1945, Blum spent five years in concentration camps. He allegedly married another woman only when he was unable to find Pietrucha.

Over the years, Blum and Pietrucha exchanged a series of letters. Apparently, in his final letter to his long-lost love, who had married another man, Blum penned, “I give all my estate after my death to my beloved Helen Pietrucha.”

This story comes from Pietrucha's longtime friend and caregiver, Teresa Musial. Musial inherited Pietrucha's estate when she passed away in 1999, and attests that she is the rightful heir to Blum's millions.

It is worth noting that the alleged will was never officially filed with the State of New York, and both witnesses who signed the 1987 letter are now deceased.

Credit: Oliver W. Ottley III/Getty Images

Shimnyuk and his attorneys have yet to publicly comment on the situation. At this time, it is unknown if the Russian national will submit to a DNA test to prove his lineage.

What do you think about this wild inheritance case?

Rebekah Barton

Rebekah's search engine optimization career began completely by accident as a college student. Over the course of her career so far, she has "grown up" with the SEO industry, from writing content while juggling classes to managing her own teams of writers and overseeing SEO strategy in subsequent roles. She is excited to bring her passion for high-quality content to CountingWorks, Inc.

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