The eccentric millionaire killed in a Los Angeles house fire last week was likely an “imposter” posing as a member of the ultra-wealthy Rothschild banking family, according to a new report.
The mystery man who went by William de Rothschild, 87 — found dead in his charred Hollywood Hills abode on Nov. 27 — had assumed the prestigious identity despite having no family ties to the Jewish dynasty, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday.
“My brother is not a Rothschild, as far as I know,” Richard Kauffman, 78, of Oregon, told the paper. “It’s odd, because I thought he had died years ago.”
Born in Colorado as William Alfred Kauffman, he inexplicably changed his name to William de Rothschild in 1985 and fooled friends and neighbors for years — complete with a flashy collection of Ferraris and Jaguars, the paper reported.
Hellbound and Down 