Neighbours of Eileen Holland say they never once saw the knife-wielding Romanian thug who inherited her house – not when she was alive, not at her funeral, and not even after police raided the modest 1930s semi and discovered it had been turned into a cannabis farm.
Mrs Holland, a 90-year-old retired teacher and former Liberal Democrat council candidate, had lived alone for more than 40 years on Windsor Avenue in Uxbridge, West London.
She had no children or close family and had become increasingly frail in her final years. Cataracts left her barely able to see, and neighbours regularly helped her read her post.
When she was found dead inside her home in October 2019, police removed the only known set of keys. Her death was not treated as suspicious.
With no will and no known next of kin, her name was added to the Government’s Bona Vacantia list of unclaimed estates – presumed destined to pass into Crown ownership. And that, neighbours assumed, was the end of it.
Then, almost four years later, a group of Eastern European men arrived at the property claiming they had ‘found an heir’ and were there to change the locks. The house had remained untouched since Mrs Holland’s death, with her belongings still inside.
Probate had been granted following the sudden appearance of a will – dated 24 February 2019, Mrs Holland’s 90th birthday – which left £2,000 to the British Heart Foundation, £1,000 to the World Wildlife Fund, and ‘the absolute entirety of the remainder of my estate as described above to Aurel Mezei.’
None of her neighbours had ever heard the name. Aurel Mezei – a heavily tattooed 44-year-old from the northern Romanian city of Baia Mare – had never been seen visiting her during her lifetime and did not attend her funeral.
Aurel Mezei – a heavily tattooed 44-year-old from the northern Romanian city of Baia Mare, inherited Eileen Holland’s home
Mrs Holland, a 90-year-old retired teacher and former Liberal Democrat council candidate, had lived alone for more than 40 years on Windsor Avenue in Uxbridge, West London
Mezei had never been seen visiting Holland during her lifetime and did not attend her funeral
His TikTok account shows him brandishing a zombie knife in one video, and flaunting a thick gold chain while smoking shisha bare-chested in another – a far cry from the sort of man a retired teacher might be expected to appoint as heir and executor in her final months.
Within a fortnight of probate being granted, Mezei – already listed as director of four companies – registered a new business called Uxbridge Property Investments Ltd, using a flat near Heathrow Airport as the official address.
‘I think they’d seen the house on the unclaimed estates list,’ said one neighbour. ‘I think they just backdated the will and inserted this Romanian businessman as the beneficiary.’
The same resident said they had seen the signature on the document. ‘It looks similar to hers,’ they added, ‘but it could well be a forgery.’
When locals flagged their concerns to police – about the will, the men changing the locks, and the sudden appearance of a long-lost heir – they say they were told it wasn’t a police matter.
It took a second call, months later, to finally bring police to the door. This time, on 18 June 2024, the complaint was about six men acting suspiciously inside the house.
Five fled the scene – and with good reason. The house had been gutted and turned into a full-scale cannabis factory.
Abdi Gjeta, 41, was the only one left behind. He was arrested on the spot and later fined £187 after pleading guilty to being concerned in the production of cannabis.
Following the August 2024 sale, the property underwent a dramatic overhaul. The red brick was rendered over in a flat grey, the garage converted, and the attic expanded
The rear of the house was extended with sharp, boxy lines that bore no relation to the original structure
Two more bedrooms were added to the property, bringing the total to five
The back garden – once green, planted, and cared for – was paved over entirely
At the far end now stands a 1,229 sq ft storage shed, painted the same slate grey as the rest of the house, dominating the small outdoor space
Within two months of the police raid, he had offloaded the house for a cut-price £375,000 to a British-Indian developer based in Leicester via Galaxy Real Estate, a small agency based in Southall, West London. To process the sale, Mezei supplied them with copies of his passport, the grant of probate, Mrs Holland’s will, and her death certificate.
A source at the firm said that her home – once neat, quiet, and carefully kept – had been left in such disrepair that not a single photo could be taken for marketing.
Since the sale, Mezei has not been seen in the UK. But a MailOnline investigation has uncovered serious doubts about how he came to inherit the property in the first place – and whether the will used to obtain probate was genuinely created before Mrs Holland’s death.
Under UK law, a will must be signed by two adult witnesses who confirm the person signed it voluntarily and in sound mind. The two individuals named on Mrs Holland’s will had both died before the document emerged in late 2023 – and their families say they had no connection to her whatsoever.
One of the witnesses was John Harry Zieger, described on the will as an electrician from Maida Vale. In reality, Mr Zieger was a retired barrister and Jewish Hungarian refugee who arrived in Britain during the Second World War. He died aged 89 in January 2023.
His widow, journalist and author Alexandra Kirsta, told MailOnline she was ‘appalled’ to learn her late husband’s name had been used on the document.
‘I don’t recognise the lady who passed away nor the benefactor of her will,’ she said. ‘I’ve checked my husband’s address book and there is no reference to either. That is definitely not John’s signature.
One of Holland’s will witnesses was John Harry Zieger (right), described on the will as an electrician from Maida Vale, the other was his widow, journalist and author Alexandra Kirsta (left)
Pictured: Zieger’s signature on Holland’s will
Pictured: Zeiger’s signature on his own will
‘He was not an electrician – he was a barrister, and a very private man not on social media. I find this appalling, it’s creepy and incredibly intrusive. This man seems to be preying on the vulnerable and I just hope that he sees justice.’
The second witness named on the will was Nelly Andersen, described as a ‘retired’ resident of a luxury flat near Borough Market in South London. In fact, she was a globetrotting senior executive at PR firm Ogilvy and remained in full-time work until shortly before her death aged 61 from cancer in 2021 – more than two years after the will was supposedly signed.
Her sister Dorthe, speaking from their native Denmark, said: ‘To my knowledge, Nelly did not know any of the persons mentioned and therefore did not sign any papers as a witness.’
MailOnline examined the witness signatures and compared them to verified examples found in their own legal documents, including their personal wills. They didn’t match.
Despite the glaring inconsistencies, the will passed through probate without challenge. The witnesses were no longer alive, and no relatives contested it – leaving only the man who had everything to gain by saying nothing at all.
Jeff Barnes, 64, from Enfield, is one of Mrs Holland’s few surviving relatives. She was his great-aunt.
‘I think this needs investigating a lot further,’ he told MailOnline. ‘It seems obvious to me that this is a scam, and that this so-called businessman got the house illegally.
‘It’s disgusting that he’s been able to get away with it. He’s wormed his way in, and I worry that slippery characters like this – who may or may not even still be in the country – often succeed in evading detection.
The second witness named on the will was Nelly Andersen, described as a ‘retired’ resident of a luxury flat near Borough Market in South London
Pictured: Andersen’s signature on Eileen will
Pictured: Andersen’s signature on her own will
Jeff Barnes, 64, from Enfield, is one of Mrs Holland’s few surviving relatives. She was his great-aunt
‘The chances of him getting prosecuted are remote. But I hope I’m wrong.’
Following the August 2024 sale, the property underwent a dramatic overhaul. The red brick was rendered over in a flat grey, the garage converted, and the attic expanded. Two more bedrooms were added, bringing the total to five.
The rear of the house was extended with sharp, boxy lines that bore no relation to the original structure. The back garden – once green, planted, and cared for – was paved over entirely. At the far end now stands a 1,229 sq ft storage shed, painted the same slate grey as the rest of the house, dominating the small outdoor space.
Inside, the original layout was stripped out and replaced with a generic modern design. The floors were covered in marble-effect tiling, and the kitchen, bathrooms, and bedrooms were fitted with high-gloss units and white stone-effect surfaces – all finished in a cold, uniform palette with little trace of the home that came before.
A sale was later agreed for £730,000 but collapsed two weeks ago after a Land Registry investigation caused delays. It is now under offer again at £600,000 – slightly above the £550,000 average for the street.
The property sits in legal limbo. The paperwork that allowed it to change hands is still being examined.
Most who knew Eileen Holland no longer live on Windsor Avenue – but those left haven’t forgotten that the man who sold her house for £375,000 was never seen while she was alive.
