Woman charged with larceny after eviction
Aug. 31—When an Ashford woman attempted to sell a Bed and Breakfast she owned in 2020, one of the guests refused to leave.
In order to sell the property, the woman offered to let the guest, Ellen Owens, 59, live at her home instead, and that arrangement continued for over a year, according to a state police affidavit.
This March, the woman reported that not only had Owens failed to pay rent while living with her, but she also had taken over $13,000 from her bank account, withdrawing the money from ATMs in Mansfield and Tolland, according to the affidavit.
Owens was charged Monday with second-degree larceny, criminal impersonation, payment card theft, and 26 counts of illegal use of a payment card.
The affidavit supporting her arrest provides the following additional details:
The woman told state police that she lost her debit card in October 2021 and believes now that Owens took it. The first unauthorized withdrawal from her account occurred that month, at the same time she began the eviction process against Owens.
She never gave Owens her pin number, but Owens had gone to the bank with her on occasion over the years and must have seen her enter it, the woman said.
Between October and March, nearly $13,300 was withdrawn from her account at bank branches in Mansfield and Tolland, and once in Groton.
State police contacted Owens, who asked if returning the money would settle the situation. That deal was presented to the woman, who said she would be pursuing charges against Owens either way.
Owens refused to speak with state police further about the allegations.
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