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A UK woman discovered she’s one of 27 heirs to a $1M estate after a reclusive NY man’s family was traced through his Finnish roots.
Pauliina Johnston, a 60-year-old woman in the UK, learned she is one of 27 distant relatives set to inherit a share of a $1 million estate after Charles Ventura, a reclusive New York man who died at 89 without known next of kin, was found to have a large extended family.
Ventura, the only child of an Italian American father and a Finnish mother from the island of Seiskari, lived a solitary life but was cared for by neighbors.
His mother’s family was displaced when Seiskari was ceded to the Soviet Union in 1940, scattering relatives worldwide.
The UK-based genealogy firm Finders International, known for the BBC show Heir Hunters, traced the lineage through Ventura’s mother’s side, identifying 27 heirs.
Johnston, a first cousin once removed, discovered her connection through her father.
The heirs, many unaware of their kinship, recently reunited in Helsinki, sharing stories and family history.
Each will receive an equal share of the estate, uniting a family separated by war, migration, and time.
Una mujer del Reino Unido descubrió que es una de las 27 herederas de un patrimonio de $1 millón después de que la familia de un hombre solitario de Nueva York fue rastreada a través de sus raíces finlandesas.