Kriti Mehrotra
It was December 3, 1999, when the entire world was left shaken to the core as billionaire-philanthropist Edmond Jacob Safra was found dead inside the panic room of his Monte Carlo home. The financier’s cause of death was smoke asphyxiation in a fire that was judicially ascertained as arson at the hands of one of his nurses, named Ted Maher, yet suspicion fell on his wife, too. As explored in Netflix’s ‘Murder in Monaco,’ that’s because Lily Safra was named a major beneficiary of his estate mere weeks prior to the incident, which his family also openly questioned.
Lily Safra Was Married Thrice Before She Tied the Knot With Edmond Safra
Although a proud native of Porto Alegre, Brazil, Lily Watkins Safra primarily grew up in a Jewish household in Rio de Janeiro before relocating with her family to Montevideo, Uruguay. That’s where she reportedly came across textile magnate Mario Cohen for the first time, only for them to soon fall so head over heels in love that they decided to marry when she was just 17 years old. According to records, they went on to have three adorable children – Claudio Cohen, Eduardo Cohen, and Adriana Cohen – before their union sadly crumbled apart within a short eight years.
Lily and Mario divorced in 1960, following which she seemingly returned to her homeland with her children to provide them with as stable a life as possible, supported by loved ones. Little did she know she would meet Romanian Jewish immigrant turned household appliance distribution tycoon Alfredo Monteverde not long after, resulting in another high-profile relationship. They tied the knot around the mid-1960s, with her even choosing to adopt his son from a previous connection named Carlos Monteverde, so as to ensure they could be a big, happy family. However, by the time 1969 rolled around, the couple was reportedly already talking about divorce, only for it to never go through because he suddenly died from two gunshots to the chest on August 25.
Alfredo’s death was ultimately ruled a suicide based on his alleged mental health struggles as well as the fact that neither his wife nor anyone else seemed to be at home at the time of the incident. The Ponto Frio founder reportedly left behind a massive $200 million fortune, most of which went to Lily, enabling her to relocate to London within a month in the hopes of starting anew. That’s where she eventually began a romantic liaison with her late husband’s banker, Edmond Safra, only to call it quits within a few short months. The rising socialite and philanthropist then married entrepreneur Samuel Bendahan in 1972, but they separated after just two weeks and were divorced a year later, with no significant issues arising.
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Lily Safra Carried Her Fourth Husband’s Name Until Her Own Passing
Lily and Edmond rekindled their romance after her third divorce, before finally tying the knot in 1976. They lived in blissful matrimony until his unfortunate demise on December 3, 1999. By that point, the banker billionaire had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, so his wife had gracefully also taken up the role of his solace as well as caregiver at every step of the way. He required nursing care, too, but the couple always stuck together, dividing their time between their homes in Geneva, Monaco, New York, and the famed Villa Leopolda on the French Riviera. In fact, they both gained Monegasque citizenship on December 2, 1999, unaware that he would pass away from smoke asphyxiation in a fire at their Monaco penthouse less than 24 hours later.
From what we can tell, Edmond was worth at least $3 billion at the time of his death, which he had carefully split into two parts in his last will, dated only a few weeks prior. While he left 50% of his assets to various charities, he divided the remaining assets among his family members, with his wife receiving approximately $800 million as the primary beneficiary. In the years that followed, Lily carried on his legacy as Chair of the Edmond J. Safra Foundation, all the while also initiating numerous educational projects in his memory. She even continued to helm the International Sephardic Education Foundation/the Israel Scholarship Education Foundation, which she had established alongside Edmond in 1977.
Lily supported the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s research and launched the Edmond & Lily Safra International Institute for Neuroscience in Brazil. She even helped build the Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, all the while backing many other such cultural, educational, medical, and science-based projects. Regarding her personal life, whenever Lily wasn’t working, she loved to spend time with her kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids, but preferred to keep the details of their experiences private.
That’s because Lily’s children – biological and adopted – have seemingly chosen to lead private lives, so she has always respected their decision to remain out of the limelight. Yet, we do know that she sadly lost her eldest son, Claudio Cohen, and his 3-year-old son/her grandson in a tragic car accident in 1989, from which she reportedly never fully recovered. Nevertheless, despite all her grief, pain, and trauma, she dedicated her life to others through her philanthropic ventures as a way to keep the legacy of her lost ones alive. She did so right until she passed away from pancreatic cancer in her home in Geneva, Switzerland, on July 9, 2022, at the age of 87.
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