My husband, whose surname is Guzman and whose family come from Juan Lopez, Moca, did some research on this in the 90s. It is the stuff of movie screenplays.
The chap in question, Jose Eugenio Guzman, made his fortune by selling mahogany logs to the Union Pacific Railway for their sleepers, the story goes. Was persuaded to deposit his millions - in gold ingots - in a Swiss bank, but died intestate and his decendants - apparently he had no children himself, just dozens of nieces and nephews through his many brothers and sisters: but none of these had the knowledge or ability to access the money, which has grown and grown in value over the years. My husband says that the families even have a number for the bank account.
Could all be a big fat myth, but relatives allege cover ups including demolition of cemeteries in Moca and loss of parish records. Even Trujillo is involved: he was said to have tried to get at the money, without success, although some believe that he and some of his cronies did, on the quiet.
The truth is that many lawyers have tried to crack this mystery with no success whatsoever. Although I tend to be skeptical about the veracity of the claims, the Swiss banks' track record in releasing dormant accounts is not whiter than white, which leads me to suspect that it could just be possible.
Those claiming to be descended from Jose Eugenio now run into hundreds of families... and the issue is stirred up every few years and then fizzles out again.
A question for Fabio - could one of these Swiss lawyers be persuaded to take on the case on a no-win no-fee basis? If there is so much money there there surely the promise of a fat percentage should be enough to motivate them?
If it ever comes to anything, of course, the drinks are on us.
Chiri
