A woman says how she was very suspicious with “so many scams” when she was told she had inherited a fortune from an unknown benefactor.
But it turned out to be legitimate as retired cabin crew member Raymond Barry Howson died alone at the age of 85 and he had no known next of kin and no will. He left a valuable estate worth in excess of £400,000 and seemingly no one to inherit it.
It was quickly established that Raymond, who was born in Altrincham, Greater Manchester, had never married or had any children. For much of his life, Raymond had worked as airline cabin crew and owned a two-bedroom flat on St. Margaret’s Road, Twickenham.
Finders International, an agent which helps find missing beneficiaries, was tasked with finding possible relatives entitled to inherit his valuable estate following his death in September 2021.
And that’s when Lorraine Gesell, 60, who lives in Canada, was contacted by Finders International as an heir to Raymond’s sizeable estate. Lorraine’s late mother emigrated from Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, to Canada in 1951, was identified as a first cousin of Raymond. Lorraine’s maternal grandfather, George Moores and Raymond’s mum, Lena Moores, were siblings.
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Raymond’s flat in London
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Image:
google)
“In this day and age there are so many scams going around that I was very wary when Finders International first contacted me,” Lorraine said, reported the Manchester Evening News. “My son, in particular, was very suspicious. I mean it does sound incredible – ‘someone you never knew has died and you’re entitled to an inheritance’. It sounds like a fairy-tale.
“However, the researchers at Finders were very good. They providing me with details about my extended family and of course there was never a request for money, so it did make sense to me. My mother, who died in 1999, was a first cousin of Raymond. I didn’t know Raymond, I never heard of him.
“It’s quite remarkable how Finders International tracked me down to Mission, British Colombia. Other than visiting the UK and studying in London for a time, Canada is where I’ve lived my entire life. I’m hoping to spend the inheritance on a holiday however I think it will all go on home improvements! But I am very grateful to Finders International for finding me. “
Born in Altrincham, Raymond was the only child of Harry Howson, an accountant, and Lena Iris Moores, whose brother was Lorraine’s granddad. In total, Finders International found 47 beneficiaries across New Zealand, Canada, Australia and throughout the UK – each taking a share of the estate.
Simonne Llewellyn, CEO of Finders International, said: “While this might be unexpected, it’s not totally uncommon, particularly with large extended families and where people emigrated from the UK a long time ago. While we don’t know what Raymond’s wishes were, had we not found these beneficiaries the money would have eventually gone to the treasury.”
Simonne Llewellyn explains: “When somebody dies intestate, their estate becomes a ‘vacant good’. Bona Vacantia is the name given to these ownerless estates that are then passed to the Crown. Family members and heirs have 12 years to claim an estate once it has been reported unclaimed to the Crown.” The Bona Vacantia list is the government’s list of unclaimed estates. It is updated daily and is free to search. According to Finders International’s interrogation of the list there are currently in excess of 6,000 unclaimed estates in England and Wales.