MIAMI (JTA/VINnews) – A British-Jewish businessman and war hero is the first centenarian to appear in the Sunday Times Rich List of the richest individuals in the United Kingdom.
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Tony Murray escaped Nazi-occupied France during World War II, joining Polish forces that headed to the United Kingdom.
Serving in the Royal Air Force as a navigator, Murray, who was born Gaston Jacques Kalifa in Paris in 1920, flew dozens of missions in North Africa, according to an article about him Monday in the Jewish Chronicle.
Murray returned to France after World War II, during which his father was murdered at Auschwitz. He took control of the family’s construction firm, accumulating an estimated wealth of $2.8 billion. Later he moved back to the United Kingdom.
His family businesses include London Security, a fire extinguisher firm, and Andrew Sykes Group, a heating giant.
Murray, who has been on the list for many consecutive years, is the oldest person on the list since 2014. But he is not high up on the list of 1,000 wealthy Britons.
His wealth account for only 5% of the net worth of the richest men on the list: Gopi and Srichand Hinduja, who own the Hinduja transportation conglomerate.
Murray is also the owner of the the famous Grand Beach Hotels in Miami.