Real estate bigwig leaves billions to dogs

NEW YORK, July 2 (UPI) -- New York hotelier and real estate investor Leona Helmsley wrote in a statement before she died instructions to leave up to $8 billion to dog welfare efforts.

Helmsley wrote in a "mission statement" that she wanted nearly her whole trust, worth $5 billion to $8 billion, to be spent on taking care of needy canines, The New York Times reported Wednesday.

The sharp tongued real estate magnate and dog lover, who died last year at the age of 87, was portrayed as the "The Queen of Mean" in a 1990 television film and has been the subject of several books.

The doggy donation has yet to be secured because because a provision of the request says Helmsley's trustees are allowed to use their judgment about how to dispense the money, the newspaper said.

Attorneys have said the mission statement could be disregarded because its instructions were not included in Helmsley's trust records or will.