DNA evidence presented in a Spanish court appears to prove that a bullfighter is the son of one of the country’s best-known matadors.
Manuel Díaz, 47, has long claimed that he is the offspring of Manuel Benítez, 79, a.k.a “El Cordobés” (a reference to his southern Spanish hometown, Cordova), the BBC reports. But the elder man rejects the claim that he fathered Díaz — who himself became a bullfighter and also uses the name “El Cordobés” — after meeting Díaz’s mother, a maid, at the height of the older man’s popularity in the 1960s.
Díaz, who says he is not seeking financial gain, secured a court hearing after he hired a private detective to obtain a DNA sample from Benítez from a restaurant napkin. When that sample suggested the two “El Cordobés” were father and son, the court conducted its own blood tests, confirming paternity to a 99.9% degree of certainty.
[BBC]
More Must-Reads From TIME
- Jane Fonda Champions Climate Action for Every Generation
- Biden’s Campaign Is In Trouble. Will the Turnaround Plan Work?
- Why We're Spending So Much Money Now
- The Financial Influencers Women Actually Want to Listen To
- Breaker Sunny Choi Is Heading to Paris
- Why TV Can’t Stop Making Silly Shows About Lady Journalists
- The Case for Wearing Shoes in the House
- Want Weekly Recs on What to Watch, Read, and More? Sign Up for Worth Your Time
Write to Simon Lewis at simon_daniel.lewis@timeasia.com