The family of Huguette Clark, the 104-year-old heiress who has spent the past 20 years living in Beth Israel Hosptial, filed a petition yesterday to seize her $500 million fortune from lawyer Wallace Bock and accountant Irving Kamsler while the two are being investigated for possibly fleecing their client. They're asking that the court appoint and independent guardian to oversee her fortune, and say in a statement, "Our wish is to protect our aunt against exploitation and we are cooperating with authorities to do all that we can to ensure her health, safety and well-being."
Bock and Kamsler have been in charge of Clark's estate for decades, but family members say the two have blocked their access to their elderly relative. They claim, "She has limited ability to understand and manage her financial affairs, particularly given her great wealth and the complex issues presented in managing her estate." They also say Kamsler should not manage her estate because he pleaded guilty to sending pornography to children in 2008.
Investigators have questioned Bock over a $10,000 dollhouse Clark allegedly bought his granddaughter, but other accounts show Clark was that generous with many people in her life. She allegedly gave her longtime nurse, Hadassah Peri, around $2 million to buy four properties, including houses in Sheepshead Bay and on the Jersey Shore. She also gave Bock $1.5 million so install a security system in the Jewish settlement where his daughters live in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. However, the family claims Bock has repeatedly attempted to get Clark to sign a will that would leave him money. They say, "It appears that the advisers are improperly controlling Ms. Clark's affairs and limiting access to Ms. Clark."
