A Polish heiress accused of being a ‘prostitute’ who conned her financial genius lover out of a large chunk of her £18m estate for her brother in a bitter High Court battle has been found dead, MailOnline can reveal .
Magdalena Zalinska, 44, a nightclub boss, was being sued by Edi Truell over claims she obtained £4m from Danny through “undue influence” before he died of a neurological condition aged 55 in 2019.
But the case took a mysterious turn after police discovered her body and broke down the door to her apartment in Clapham, south London, when officers on a routine patrol were accosted by concerned neighbors.
Police confirmed to MailOnline that Ms Zalinska’s sudden death is not being treated as suspicious, but unexpected.
The divorced mother of two was at the center of an acrimonious feud with the family of millionaire former Goldman Sachs banker Danny.
The sudden death of nightclub boss Magdalena Zalinska is not being treated as suspicious
Ms Zalinska, 44, who was left more than £1m in Mr Truell’s will, denied the allegations, insisting they had a “romantic and loving relationship” for 14 years.
Edi, a 61-year-old City financier, says that although he had a sexual relationship with his brother, he had been his paid carer since 2012 and did not live with him.
Lifetime Labor Party member Danny Truell was a Balliol College contemporary of future Prime Minister Boris Johnson and frequently faced him in debates.
He then became a highly successful fund manager. After running the asset management arm of Goldman Sachs, he moved to the Wellcome Trust, Britain’s largest charity, as chief investment officer in 2005.
In 12 years, it increased assets under management from £12.3bn to £20.9bn. He also allowed her to double the amount he donated a year, to over £1bn.
The house in Clapham, South London, where Danny Truell had a flat and met Mrs Zalinska.
He and Naomi, his wife of 16 years, divorced in 2011. In 2012, he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, which later developed into a form of motor neurone disease.
Balliol College alumnus Danny Truell (pictured) became a highly successful fund manager.
In High Court, Judge Michael Green said Truell had considerable personal wealth, but lived “an apparently frugal lifestyle”, did not drive, had expensive hobbies or went on vacation many times, and lived in “a modest basement and poorly furnished and ground floor”. maisonette flat’ near Clapham Junction, London. During his illness he was “dependent on alcohol,” the judge added.
In his will, he described Ms Zalinska, a Polish national, who has also had alcohol problems, as his ‘partner and dependent’.
The court battle is about a series of transfers to her before Mr. Truell died.
These included £1.34 million paid between 2013 and 2018 to a company through which his London nightclub, Southwark Rooms, operated.
A further £915,000 went to her directly in wire transfers, £1.366m in spending and withdrawals to her debit card, while he also transferred his interest in the flat she had previously rented to him in Clapham, where her body was discovered.
Polish heiress Ms Zalinska (pictured), 44, received more than £1m in Mr Truell’s will
Eli’s lawyers said she had also used his Southwark nightclub as a “front” to “extract” huge sums of money that have since disappeared.
Ms Zalinski’s ex-husband, Wojtek Zalinski (pictured), confirmed her death to MailOnline.
At a hearing earlier this year, Judge Michael Green said Ms Zalinska was “justly offended in my opinion by any suggestion that she did not have a deep and loving relationship with the deceased, or that she had taken advantage of him.” .
In his will, he described Mrs. Zalinska as his ‘partner and dependent’. It was admitted that she had struggled with alcohol problems.
Ms Zalinska claimed to have met Mr Truell at the end of her previous marriage and began a relationship with him in 2004. The couple moved into the basement apartment in Clapham Flat in 2016.
Mr Truell’s brother, also a city high-flyer, and former lawyer John Rayner Hatchard claim, as executors of his estate, that the evidence casts doubt on the “quality” of the relationship.
His lawyer, Edward Hicks, told the judge that Truell had two “very separate” lives, one with his family and the other with Zalinska, with whom he had a “very strange relationship.”
He said a crucial question in a trial would be whether Truell was in a relationship similar to “husband and wife” or had been “marked by promiscuity”, something he did not know.
The basement flat in Clapham had previously been described as “modest and poorly furnished”.
‘Is this a lady who is presenting a false image of her relationship with Danny?’ she said at a hearing in February.
“We have evidence that she was in relationships with other people.”
The flat door inside the property that was vandalized by Metropolitan Police officers
The sudden death of Ms. Zalinska means that Mr. Truell’s attempts to find out what happened to the millions will never be known.
Her ex-husband, Wojtek Zalinski, confirmed her death to MailOnline, saying he was flying to the UK from their home in Krakow, Poland, to help determine what happened to her.
Zalinski denied the claims that his ex-wife was a prostitute, saying, “That was utter nonsense, she was never a prostitute.” Never. I don’t know why such hurtful things were said about her in court. That is wrong and should not have been said. She’s not here to defend herself now, so I will.
They called me and told me that he had died. I don’t know anymore, but I will be flying to London to be with the family,” she added.
Zalinski said he and his ex-wife divorced 20 years ago but have kept in touch. The last time he saw her was a year ago.
Police said officers were approached by people concerned about Zalinska’s well-being on Saturday.
A Met Police spokesman said: ‘Officers forced entry and found a 46-year-old woman dead. Her closest relatives have been informed.
“The death is being treated as unexpected, although initial investigations determined that it was not suspicious.”
A full trial of the £4 million claim against Ms Zalinska is scheduled for next year.
Lawyers for Ms Zalinska and Mr Truell’s estate declined to comment.
