Naman Shrestha
The entire world of banking was left shell-shocked when the news of the passing of the successful and renowned billionaire banker, Edmond Safra, broke out. The mysterious fire in his luxurious Monaco penthouse and his tragic death, alongside his nurse, left various unanswered questions behind. The investigation led the detectives to an unlikely killer, who claimed that he didn’t have murderous intentions. All the intricate details about the case and the investigation that ensued are covered in Netflix’s ‘Murder in Monaco,’ a true crime documentary series that also features exclusive and insightful interviews with Edmond’s loved ones and the officials linked to the case.
Edmond Safra Devoted His Life to Business and Philanthropy
Born on August 6, 1932, in Beirut, Lebanon, Edmond Jacob Safra was the beloved son of Jacob and Esther Safra. He had eight or nine siblings, including Elie, Joseph, Moise, Evelyn, Gabi, Arlette, Paulette, and Hugette. He was of Syrian Jewish descent, as his father had moved the family from Aleppo, Syria, to Lebanon in the early 20th century, following the fall of the Ottoman Empire. The Safra family had established a strong reputation in the fields of banking and trading in Beirut. In his mid-teens, Safra began gaining experience in the operations of precious metals and foreign exchange trading at J. E. Safra Bank, the family bank. The Safras relocated to Italy in 1949 and assumed a position in a Milan-based trading company.
Edmond had inherited the tricks of the trade from his visionary father. Thus, at the ripe age of 16, he gained approximately $40 million through trading gold, particularly through arbitrage transactions between Italy and Britain, the proceeds from which he utilized to set up a bank in Geneva, Switzerland. He named it Trade Development Bank and strictly kept its records in ancient Arabic script. They shifted base once again in 1952, ultimately settling in Brazil. It was in 1955 in the South American country that Edmond and Joseph established their first Brazilian bank/financial company.
In his early or mid-40s, Edmond tied the knot with Lily Watkins. It was her fourth marriage, and she was already a mother to kids from her previous marriages. Through determination and persistence, he had amassed immense wealth and gained considerable repute, founding Republic National Bank of New York, which spanned multiple branches. One of the world’s richest men, he had homes in Monaco, Geneva, New York City, as well as the Villa Leopolda in Villefranche-sur-Mer on the French Riviera.
Edmond Safra Met His Demise Alongside One of His Nurses
By the 90s, Edmond and Lily Safra split their time among their multiple residences. In the latter part of the decade, he began spending more time in his two-story La Belle Époque waterfront property in central Monte Carlo in Monaco. While the philanthropist was reportedly leading a fulfilling life beside his wife, his health had begun to deteriorate. He faced medical complications due to his Parkinson’s diagnosis, leading him to seek nursing care. However, didn’t let it dampen his spirit. Since he felt no sense of risk to his life in the community, he reportedly made his bodyguards go off duty at night. On December 2, 1999, the multibillionaire banker was ecstatic as he and his wife were officially rewarded Monegasque citizenship.
Everything seemed fine until the swanky penthouse was broken into on December 3 by two masked men. Edmond swiftly rushed into his panic room along with his nurse, Vivian Torrente, waiting for danger to subside. Not long after, the property was set ablaze. By the time the firefighters reached the residence and broke into the panic room, Edmond and Vivian had passed away after being suffocated by fumes that enveloped the house. According to reports, Edmond was sitting on his chair, while the latter was lying on the ground near his feet. Thus, a criminal investigation was immediately launched to get to the bottom of the fire and two deaths.
Edmond Safra’s Killer Claimed His Intentions Were Not to Kill the Banker
As part of the investigation, the authorities interviewed multiple individuals who were personally and professionally associated with Edmond Safra. They were told that Edmond’s personal security chief, Samuel Cohen, had claimed that security guards were not required for that fateful night. In the initial phase of the investigation, suspicions were also raised against his wife, Lily Safra, due to her shady history and the fact that she inherited billions of dollars after Edmond’s passing. However, the detectives’ focus soon shifted towards one of Edmond’s nurses, Ted Maher, who had somehow survived the incident.
Suspected of starting the fire to gain the trust and attention of his employer by rescuing him, Ted was arrested and charged with arson in connection with the fire that killed Edmond and his nurse, Vivian. After his arrest, the male nurse claimed that a couple of intruders had broken into the penthouse, after which he allegedly tried fighting them off. He told the investigators that he received a few stab wounds in the process, but managed to instruct Vivian to call for help and take Edmond to the panic room. Ted claimed that he started a small fire by lighting toilet paper in a trash bin to set off the smoke alarm and alert the others.
He alleged that he tried going downstairs but ended up losing consciousness, after which the police arrived. During his interrogation, Ted also told the detectives that he was temporarily kidnapped by a group of men, who blackmailed him to keep one of the windows of Edmond’s penthouse open on a particular night in exchange for the safety of his wife and children. On December 7, it was reported that the suspect had confessed to setting the penthouse on fire “to draw attention to himself” in order to get in the good books of his employer. As per reports, he had stabbed himself in order to corroborate his story about the intruders.
Ted Maher, AKA Jon Green, is Currently Incarcerated at a New Mexico Prison Facility
A couple of years later, Ted Maher stood trial for the murders of Edmond Safra and Vivian Torrente. During the trial, the defendant admitted to setting fire to his employer’s Monaco penthouse but claimed that he only started a small fire in a trash bin so that he could help Edmond get to safety and take credit for being heroic. When Ted felt that he could lose his well-paid job, he devised the aforementioned plan in an attempt to secure a promotion. The prosecution argued that the defendant’s decision to let the fire spread instead of extinguishing it led to the demise of two people.
Thus, in December 2002, Ted was found guilty of the arson deaths of Edmond and Vivian and sentenced to 10 years in prison. He also took the stand on the final day of his trial, calling Edmond “the best employer I ever had’ and stating, “What’s happened is and always will be a terrible accident.” A couple of months after his sentencing, Ted and his cellmate broke out of prison by sawing off the bars on their cell and climbing out of the prison on January 21, 2003. Although he managed to walk all the way to Nice, he was apprehended by the authorities seven hours later. After serving his sentence, the convicted arsonist maintained his innocence and claimed that his confession was coerced.
Later, Ted Maher changed his name to Jon Green and lived in San Antonio, Texas, where he was reportedly arrested for burglary, larceny, forgery, and fraud, for the alleged kidnapping of three dogs, owned by his ex-wife, in Carlsbad, New Mexico, on June 13, 2022. In the following year, he allegedly hired another inmate named Greg Markham to have his then-wife, Kim Lark, killed through a fentanyl overdose. Eventually, in March 2025, Ted, also known as Jon, was convicted of criminal solicitation to commit first-degree murder. Four months later, in July, he was sentenced to nine years in prison. As of today, 67-year-old Jon Green is serving his sentence at Central New Mexico Correctional Facility in Los Lunas, New Mexico, with his release expected in 2031.
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