WICHITA – A woman convicted of stealing $54,000 from an ailing resident of a Kansas nursing home was sentenced Monday to 32 months in prison, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.
Shelby Frias, 53 Wichita, was found guilty in January of mistreatment of an elder person for taking the money from her stepmother's bank account from 2015-2017.
At the time, Frias' 72-year-old stepmother was suffering from failing health and dementia.
The victim died about five months after the theft was discovered.
Frias testified at trial that her stepmother wanted her to take the money and keep it safe in case the stepmother was ever able to go home.
Evidence at trial showed that Frias spent much of the money on shopping, hotels, trips and rental cars from 2015-2017.
Frias asked for probation at her sentencing hearing on Friday. District Judge Eric Williams denied the request and ordered Frias to pay restitution to the victim's estate after she is released from serving her sentence.
The case came to light when staff at the nursing home noticed the resident's housing bill was not being paid. The nursing home referred the case to the Kansas Department of Children and Families.