Leona Helmsley’s dog Trouble may be living quietly in Florida, but back in New York there’s a lot of barking about the way the late hotel queen’s millions are being given away.
Three animal welfare groups filed court papers yesterday accusing Helmsley’s trustees of a “scheme to deprive dog welfare charities” of their share in her fortune. The real estate baroness died in 2007.
The groups say that Helmsley primarily intended to give her fortune to dog causes.
They say the decision in Manhattan Surrogate’s Court giving the trustees sole authority to decide what to do with her fortune should be thrown out.
The trustees maintain Helmsley did not intend for the charitable trust to focus on dogs.
Helmsley’s Maltese is living on a $2 million trust fund.