By Melissa Meehan, Aap
A psychologist who tried to steal millions of dollars from her dead partner’s family by forging a fake will has been jailed.
Kris Schroder, 61, will spend a minimum of 20 months in jail after she was sentenced to four years by County Court Judge Claire Quin on Monday.
She was previously found guilty of eight offences by a jury, including attempting to obtain financial advantage by deception, attempting to pervert the course of justice and perjury.
Schroder, from Harkaway, tried to inherit her dying partner’s $2.25 million estate by creating a fake will to exclude all other family members as beneficiaries.
Marie Hart died from an aggressive brain cancer in February 2016 and in her will she left one third of her estate to Schroder, one third to her nephew and the final third to her niece.
About two months after her death, Schroder travelled to Thailand where she told two friends she had created another fake will for Ms Hart, dated April 2014, which left everything to her.
Kenneth Ewington and Warren Rogan, Ms Schroder’s friends of 40 years, were then told she had forged their signatures onto the false will.
Schroder later asked them to sign false affidavits in support of her application for probate in the Supreme Court.
She also offered to pay Ms Hart’s niece and nephew $200,000 to drop legal action against the will.
During sentencing Judge Claire Quin said Schroder’s motivation was either greed or a misguided entitlement to the whole estate.
“Your conduct escalated to support that lie,” she said.
Schroder appeared virtually from the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre. She did not speak during the hearing but shook her head throughout the summary of her crimes and sentencing.
She is expected to appear in Melbourne Magistrates Court in February on other matters.
