Stamford Woman Sentenced for Stealing More Than $400,000 from Her Own Grandmother

Stamford, CT - Heather Gansel, a Stamford chiropractor and former gym owner, was sentenced Wednesday to three years in prison and must pay back $160,000 for stealing more than $400,000 from her now-deceased grandmother.

Gansel was caught in 2012 when her uncle discovered that she had wiped out his mother's bank accounts, clandestinely drawing them down to the point that only $96 remained at the time the theft was discovered, reports the Stamford Advocate's John Nickerson.

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She was convicted in October 2015, and she subsequently paid back $44,000 to her uncle, who stood to inherit more than $200,000 upon his mother's death. Gansel's mother, her uncle's sister, stood to collect the remaining money, but she has forsaken the inheritance so Gansel does not have to pay her back, according to the Advocate.

Gansel gained access to her grandmother's accounts when she lived with the grandmother and took over paying her bills and handling the elder woman's finances.

Click here to read the full story on the Stamford Advocate website.

Photo: Heather Gansel. Photo credit: Stamford Police Department