'Queen of Mean' tycoon cuts people from her will - and leaves £4BILLION to dogs
'Queen of Mean': But Leona Helmsley had a soft spot for her dog Trouble
Hotel magnate Leona Helmsley has left a trust valued between £2.5billion and £4billion to provide for the care of dogs.
It has emerged that the New York socialite, who died in August last year aged 87, signed a statement in 2003 saying the trust should be used to help destitute men and women, and provide for the care of dogs.
A year later, she removed the first aim.
However, the statement has a provision that trustees may use their discretion in distributing the funds, reports the New York Times.
Lawyers have said the statement may not have legal standing, as it was not incorporated into her will or the trust documents.
A court last month lowered an inheritance left to Mrs Helmsley's dog from £6million to £1million on the grounds that she was mentally unfit when she made her will.
Helmsley, known as 'the Queen of Mean' for the way she dealt with her employees, had a soft spot for her dog.
A spokesman for the executors of Helmsley's estate told the Times they did not want to comment on the statement because they were still working to determine the trust's direction.
Helmsley amassed a fortune in real estate and hotels with her husband, Harry Helmsley, who died in 1997.
Famously quoted as having said 'only the little people pay taxes', Helmsley spent 18 months in federal prison for evading $1.7million in taxes in 1989.
