A lawyer acting for victims of Jimmy Savile has begun a search for what he says could be the disgraced star’s missing millions.
Leeds-born TV and radio presenter Savile left an estate of £4.3m when he died in October 2011 at the age of 84.
But Alan Collins, of Pannone Solicitors, believes the serial sex attacker may actually have been worth more than £20m after decades of showbiz fame.
Mr Collins has now written to lawyers for the executor of Savile’s will asking for an “urgent forensic examination” of his assets.
Fears have even been voiced that the Jim’ll Fix It host may have stashed part of his fortune away in secret overseas accounts.
Mr Collins, who is representing 55 of Savile’s victims, said: “He was the number one celebrity in this country for more than 20 years.
“He had no dependents, was not a spendthrift and only had modest properties and very few luxuries, like his Rolls-Royce.
“He left a £4.3m estate, which in the context of his lifestyle and other celebrities of such long-standing success is a modest amount.
“If he had left £20m or more then that would have been a more realistic and understandable amount. It just doesn’t add up.
“Quite simply, we are asking ‘what happened to Jimmy’s millions?’.”
Savile’s estate was frozen last year by will executor NatWest Bank after it emerged many of his victims were preparing compensation claims.
A spokesman for Osborne Clarke, a law firm acting for NatWest, declined to comment on Mr Collins’ call for an examination of the star’s finances.
Detectives fear Savile claimed 450 victims during a campaign of sex abuse spanning four decades.
Scotland Yard, which has taken the national police lead on the case, is poised to publish a report on his activities.
It is expected to give a full list of locations – including more than a dozen hospitals – where Savile preyed on his victims.
There were claims yesterday (Jan 7) that the list will also include at least one hospice.