Man Leaves His Fortune To Random Strangers

A wealthy Portuguese bachelor who had no children has left his fortune to 70 strangers whom he randomly picked from a telephone book.

Apparently, Luis Carlos da Camara drew up his unusual will in 1988 in front of two witnesses at a Lisbon registry office, many years before he died of natural causes at the age of 42.

"I am sure he just wanted to create confusion by leaving his belongings to strangers. That amused him", one of the witnesses and one of the man's few friends, Anibal Castro Vila, tells a local newspaper.

"The registry office employee was shocked when he asked for the Lisbon telephone book and started choosing names at random. She asked him several questions to check his sanity but he was really lucid", the friend added.

Da Camara's heirs are still waiting for his estate, which includes a 12-room apartment in the centre of Lisbon, a house near the historic northern town of Guimaraes, a car and over 30,000 in cash to be divided up.

Most of the strangers doubted the authenticity of the letter informing them that they had been named as heirs by a total stranger at first.

"I became frightened because I thought it was a scam. Every day you hear of pranks people play on old people", said 76-year-old Helena, one of the heirs. "At first I thought it was a hoax, but I need the money and I am very grateful to him".

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