Phoenix woman sentenced to 30 days in jail for bilking elderly man

Phoenix resident Gail Louise Olson will spend 30 days in jail and pay restitution for taking financial advantage of an elderly man she befriended for four years, a Jackson County judge decided Thursday.

 

Judge Lorenzo Mejia also prohibited Olson from serving as a caregiver for anyone outside her immediate family.
 

A jury found Olson guilty Thursday of first-degree criminal mistreatment toward the late John A. Becker of Phoenix, who gave Olson more than $110,000 in cash payments, signed over his car to her and took out a life insurance policy naming her as the beneficiary before he died in May 2012.
 

The verdict followed three days of often emotional testimony in court.
 

Olson was silent, often stoic, during the trial, but denied the charges brought against her after her sentencing.
 

"I loved John a lot. He was my best friend. I only did things to help him because he asked me to. He loved me like a daughter," Olson said, visibly distressed and wringing her hands behind her back.
 

"I don't know what to say. I didn't do anything wrong, I'm sorry. I can't admit to something I didn't do."
 

Becker's children John B. Becker and Sandy Becker both spoke to the courtroom through tears after the verdict was read. They said Olson's actions caused a rift in the family when members became suspicious of Olson, but their father refused to believe their concerns.
 

Sandy Becker said she found some comfort that her father seemed to understand what had happened in his final days.
 

"Things were so stressful and he was so angry for the last six to eight months, but the day he died, he had been asking for me," she said, wiping her eyes.

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Phoenix woman sentenced to 30 days in jail for bilking elderly man