9-year-old Filipina to inherit P140 million

By Frank 'Boy' Pestaño



A NINE-YEAR-OLD girl from the Philippines, Jinky Young, claims Bobby Fischer, who died in 2008, was her father. She stands to inherit approximately P140 million and some gold holdings deposited in a bank in Iceland.

Other claimants are Fischer’s nephews, Nicolas and Alexander Targ, Bobby’s alleged wife Miyoko Watai and the Internal Revenue Service.

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Thordur Bogason, a lawyer based in Reykjavik, said evidence was presented to the court that showed that Fischer sent Jinky and her mother Marilyn Young “considerable” amount of money on eight occasions in the years before he died. It ranged from $1,230 to $6,150.

Other documents she provided were pictures of her with Fischer, and postcards to Jinky signed “Daddy” that she said were from Fischer.

Also, Marilyn claimed that Fischer also gifted her with a house and lot in an upscale subdivision in Davao.

“At this point we are just trying to establish this,” Thordur said. “And if she is confirmed as the daughter of Bobby Fischer, then by Icelandic law she is his legal and only heir.”

The remains of chess genius Bobby Fischer was exhumed a few days ago for paternity testing .

Paternity tests use samples from blood or tissue and compares the DNA pattern of the child to that of the alleged father.

Usually the mother’s DNA is also collected (called a trio) to help exclude half of the child’s DNA, leaving the other half for comparison to the alleged father. Because DNA is inherited from parents, the comparison can be used as definitive proof of a biological relationship.

Establishing paternity is important not only for legal and financial reasons, but also for social and health reasons.

Both mothers and children can get a peace of mind and sense of well-being for knowing for sure who the biological father of a child is.

There are two types of paternity tests: legal and home DNA tests. Unlike a home DNA test, legal testing follows a Chain of Custody documentation process to ensure accurate and legally defensible results. Testing can offer a 99.99 percent accuracy rate for inclusion and a 100% accuracy rate for exclusion.

Police district commissioner Olafur Helgi Kjartansson said Fischer’s corpse was dug from a cemetery near Selfoss in southern Iceland in the presence of a doctor, a priest and other officials.

Kjartansson said the exhumation “was done in a professional and dignified way and according to law. The privacy of the deceased was protected at all times.”

Thordur Bogason said the country’s Supreme Court made the decision in order to allow for tests so his client, Jinky Young, can find out who her father is.

Earlier in December last year, Jinky and her mother were DNA-tested in Iceland.

One of Iceland’s lower courts had originally been asked for permission to examine Fischer’s remains, Bogason said, but it was denied. They appealed to the Supreme Court, which approved the exhumation.

According to Samuel Estimo, Jinky’s local lawyer, this whole issue will be resolved in about two week’s time.

A movie is also in the works as Kevin MacDonald helms the story of Bobby Fischer’s match in 1972 against Soviet Boris Spassky in the Universal Pictures co-production with Working Title Films. Shawn Slovo provided the script based on David Edmonds and John Eidinow’s book “Bobby Fischer goes to war.”

Another movie about Fischer is ‘’Pawn Sacrifice” starring Tobey Maguire of Spiderman fame. David Fincher will direct.

Royalties from these movies will add a sizable income to Fischer’s estate.

(boypestano@gmail.com,www.chessmoso.blogspot.com)


Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on July 16, 2010.