Summary
Margaret Cassidy was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in jail for defrauding her aunt, Elizabeth Murphy, of over £300,000. Cassidy used most of the stolen money to convert a disused church in Glasgow into a gym called Sanctuary Gym. Her actions were uncovered when her aunt noticed missing funds from her bank account.
Key Facts
- Margaret Cassidy, 51, took £317,475 from her 89-year-old aunt, Elizabeth Murphy.
- The theft occurred between December 2020 and January 2022.
- Most of the money built a gym, the Sanctuary Gym, in a former church in Glasgow.
- Cassidy spent additional amounts on personal expenses and luxury items.
- About £160,000 was used to renovate the church into a gym.
- Cassidy defrauded a fitness company by pretending to be a legal secretary to acquire gym equipment.
- Elizabeth Murphy discovered the fraud and confronted Cassidy in 2022.
- Murphy died before the trial ended, but her earlier statements helped convict Cassidy.
