Woman jailed for defrauding aunt out of £300k to build gym

Woman jailed for defrauding aunt out of £300k to build gym6 hours agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleSpindriftMargaret Cassidy used most of the money to convert a disused church into a gymA woman who defrauded her elderly aunt out of more than £300,000 to build a gym has been jailed for two-and-a-half years.Margaret Cassidy stole a total of £317,475 from 89-year-old Elizabeth Murphy between December 2020 and January 2022.The 51-year-old used most of the money to convert the disused former St Kenneth's Church in Linthouse, Glasgow, into the Sanctuary Gym.Cassidy was sentenced at Glasgow Sheriff Court of defrauding her aunt - who has since died - after being convicted in February.Sheriff Andrew McIntyre told Cassidy: "The jury found you guilty of defrauding your vulnerable elderly aunt of a very substantial sum of money."Your conduct was audacious and motivated by your personal financial gain."I am in no doubt custody will reflect the gravity and scale of your offending and will deter others from such conduct in future."GoogleMargaret Cassidy used most of the money to convert the disused former St Kenneth's Church into the Sanctuary GymMurphy inherited the money after her husband died in 2019.The trial heard how her niece soon used her cash to buy £136 yoga pants.Cassidy went on to transfer £24,000 from her aunt's bank account to purchase expensive fitness equipment.About £160,000 was then used for extensive renovations to transform the Victorian C-listed former church into a gym.It also emerged a further £101,000 was paid into Cassidy's account.At the time advertising at the Sanctuary Gym said it hoped to sign up 600 members with personal trainers on site and one-to-one coaching.The court heard Cassidy also spent £2,400 on a council tax bill; £2,200 on artificial grass at her business partner's home; £1,300 at designer tailors Forbes; and £800 at Glasgow's Corinthian's casino.She also put down a deposit to hav...