The bitter battle over Brooke Astor and her millions is not only a shame, it could also be a crime.
Prosecutors are looking into the infamous guardianship case amid allegations the signature on the final amendment to Astor’s will was forged, a spokeswoman for Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said yesterday.
“We are going to take a look at information provided to us by [Astor’s] court-appointed lawyer to see if any of this rises to the level of criminality,” spokeswoman Barbara Thompson said.
Astor’s lawyer, Susan Robbins, said she plans to meet prosecutors next week and turn over a report by a nationally known handwriting expert that concludes the signature on the fourth amendment – known as a codicil – was faked.
While the first three codicils to the 104-year-old philanthropist’s will direct most of her fortune to her favorite charities, the final codicil redirects millions of dollars to her son, Anthony Marshall, 83.
Marshall last week ceded guardianship of his mother and was forced to pay $1.3 million in undeclared taxes as part of the settlement ordered in Astor’s guardianship case.
As part of the guardianship case, handwriting expert Gus Lesnevich examined the four codicils and compared them to Astor’s known handwriting samples. He determined Astor “did not write” the last signature dated March 3, 2004, according to a copy of his report obtained by The Post.
Astor “could not have written the questioned, ‘Brooke Russell Astor’ signature . . . due to the deterioration of her ability to write her name,” Lesnevich said in the report.
Present at the final signing of the will was Astor, two aides and shady lawyer Francis X. Morrissey, a close associate of Marshall who was set to receive millions from the new will upon Astor’s death, according to previous reports.
Lawyers for Marshall and Morrissey could not be reached for comment.