British man with cancer looks for long-lost Filipino friend to give millions worth of inheritance

A British man has been looking for his long-lost Filipino friend so he could give him millions worth of inheritance.

According to the “Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho” episode, Verne Mclean from Birmingham, England, has been diagnosed with prostate cancer.

With his assets worth about 500,000 pounds or about P33 million, he wished to share 5-10% of it to his Filipino friend.

As soon as he finds him, Verne said that he’d immediately hand over PHP300,000.

“I’m quite well-off, but not a multi-millionaire but I’m all right. I’m comfortable,” he said.

The British said he was working as a crane operator in Libya in 1979 when he met a Filipino chef named Mar.

Verne recalled that Mar, who worked at his favorite restaurant, always gave him extra servings of vegetables because the chef knew he was a vegetarian.

“His personality shone. He was a wise boy,” Verne said. “Absolutely brilliant. Always smiling, always joking. When you went in the house he was a certain life and soul to the party.”

They became good friends. The British man also remembered how Mar helped him out several times in the past.

“I could understand him perfectly. We got good friends. I used to go ’round to their house. Maybe once every 6, 7 weeks,” Verne said.

Although Mar and Verne grew up poor, they both had big dreams.
However, they eventually went their separate ways when Verne was assigned to another country and Mar went back home to the Philippines.

Even though they were miles apart, Mar would write him letters.

“Mar wrote. I can’t write. He sent letters and he invited me over to Manila. I never responded. I’ve never written in my life. I mean, I couldn’t do anything. So I’ve got the letters. I’ve kept them to this day,” Verne said.

The last time he got a letter from Mar, Verne said, was in 1984.

When Verne went to the United Kingdom, he was able to save up, start a business and buy several houses. After he retired, he planned to visit the Philippines, but it never happened.

In 2018, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Verne eventually decided to give his inheritance to someone who deserves it.

“We talked more about it last year of contacting Mar ’cause I thought, maybe, he’s still there in Manila.’ He’s always resonated in my thoughts. I want to know how he is. He may have gone. He might be a multi-millionaire, but we don’t know, do we? But I really would like to track him and find out.  If I can catch him face-to-face and we can keep in touch. It would really be a blessing.”

One of the people helping Verne found out Mar was his other Filipino friend, Guia, who reached out to KMJS for help

Their efforts led them to a man with the same name, who is based in the United States, and said that he used to work in Libya.

In the end, he says that he is not the one that Verne was looking for, and had asked for privacy.

Despite everything, Verne is still hoping to be able to reconnect with his old friend Mar. – Kaela Malig/RC, GMA News