DECISION Maria E. Salgado Alvarez has petitioned for probate in the estate of Eliseo Balducci of a copy of a one-page instrument dated July 9, 2007 (see SCPA 1407). Decedent died on May 24, 2018, at age 74, more than a decade after executing the purported will, leaving an estate of close to $8 million, survived by six first cousins. Under the propounded instrument, petitioner is nominated executor and sole beneficiary. The Public Administrator (see SCPA 1123 [2][i][2]) and the five objecting first cousins having withdrawn their respective objections in a stipulation filed on October 18, 2019, the proceeding now is uncontested. The original instrument last was known to have been in the possession of decedent’s accountant of 28 years, Louis M. Iannucci. In an affidavit filed on July 12, 2018, Mr. Iannucci explained that decedent had been an owner of the restaurant Divino and the building in which it was located and had maintained an office in the building where he kept business and personal financial documents. Mr. Iannucci averred that, when the building was sold, “on or about August 2013,” decedent entrusted to Mr. Iannucci for safekeeping certain financial documents, documents decedent “needed to keep regarding his ownership” of the building, and decedent’s original one-page purported will under which petitioner — decedent’s “girlfriend and life partner” — was named fiduciary and sole beneficiary. Mr. Iannucci further averred that he retained decedent’s original purported will and the other documents in a file cabinet in his own office. Four years later, however, as Mr. Iannucci explained: “In the winter of 2017 (I do not remember the specific month), I called Mr. Balducci and told him that I was going to shred all documents relating to Divino and [the building in which it had been located] because I believed neither he nor I needed to keep them any longer. Mr. Balducci agreed that all these documents should be shredded.” When petitioner informed Mr. Iannucci of decedent’s sudden and unexpected death, Mr. Iannucci looked for decedent’s original purported will but realized that, when he intentionally had destroyed documents relating to Divino and the building in which it was located, he inadvertently had destroyed decedent’s original purported will as well. Here, the conditions set forth in SCPA 1407, for probate of a lost or destroyed purported will, have been met. The record establishes that decedent did not revoke his purported will (see SCPA 1407 [1]). Indeed, decedent gave the original instrument to his longtime accountant for safekeeping. In addition, the execution of the propounded instrument has been “proved in the manner required for the probate of an existing will” (see SCPA 1407 [2]). Although both attesting witnesses to the execution of the original instrument predeceased decedent, the court is satisfied with the proofs — in the form of affidavits by Mr. Iannucci — of the handwriting of decedent and of Antonio Bongioanni, one of the two attesting witnesses1 (see SCPA 1405 [4]). Finally, the court is satisfied with Mr. Iannucci’s averral, in his affidavit filed on July 12, 2018, with respect to the copy offered for probate: “I can say with certainty that that is an exact copy of the original will Mr. Balducci gave me on or about August 2012 to hold for safekeeping” (see SCPA 1407 [3]). The court, having inquired “particularly into all the facts,” is “satisfied with the genuineness of the will and the validity of its execution” (SCPA 1408 [1]). It appears that decedent “at the time of executing it was in all respects competent to make a will and not under restraint” (SCPA 1408 [2]). Probate decree signed. Dated: December 4, 2019
