Pavarotti's heirs "agree" on inheritance

Luciano Pavarotti's widow and the opera star's three daughters from his first marriage have agreed on a "equitable" division of his inheritance, reported dpa.

Assets from Pavarotti's estate "have been divided in an equitable way compatible with legal parameters," Anna Maria Bernini, lawyer to Pavarotti's widow, Nicoletta Mantovani.

Through the deal, Mantovani agreed that a villa belonging to the late tenor near the Adriatic Sea resort of Pesaro, would go to the three daughters, Bernini told the Bologna-based daily Il Resto del Carlino.

"A decision made by all with great conviction and in full agreement, without obligations or forms of compensation," Bernini was quoted as saying.

If confirmed, the agreement could end an alleged feud over Pavarotti's fortune which Italian media have rumoured ranges from between 30 million to 200 million euros (47 million to 316 million dollars).

Pavarotti's last will, drafted some six weeks before his death from pancreatic cancer, on September 6, 2007, excluded the daughters from his first marriage from a US-based trust fund worth some 15 million euros.

In the interview published Monday, Bernini did not say if assets from the US fund were included in the agreement reached between her client and the daughters.

A prosecutor who in October 2007 launched a probe on whether Pavarotti was in a "lucid" state when the "American will" was drawn up, said Monday his investigation was continuing.

Prosecutor Massimo Di Patria was quoted as saying by ANSA news agency that he hoped to conclude the probe by September.