Family claims neighbor had elderly aunt cremated without their permission
Gretel Taylor, 78, stopped reaching out to her niece, Judy Bovell, who lives in Barbados.
More Stories
A Brooklyn family claims a neighbor took control of their elderly aunt's estate and belongings after she died - without any consent.
Gretel Taylor, 78, stopped reaching out to her niece, Judy Bovell, who lives in Barbados.
The family got a call from Taylor’s neighbor saying she had fallen and was in the hospital. The family was grateful for the neighbor.
But after a while, there was no word from her.
“I didn’t hear from my aunt, and I knew that was unusual,” Bovell said. “Then Christmas came, and I thought, this is really strange.”
Bovell called the police for a wellness check. That’s when the neighbor told them Taylor had died on Nov. 11 and that she had her cremated without asking the family.
“I think I had a mini breakdown,” Bovell said in tears.
The family later found out the neighbor listed herself as Taylor’s daughter on the death certificate, though Taylor never had children.
They also discovered a will that made the neighbor the sole beneficiary of Taylor’s Brooklyn home and land in Barbados. Bovell says the signature on the will didn’t look like her aunt’s.
The family's lawyers got the will thrown out, and they’re now suing. The Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office is investigating.
“We want her to go to prison,” Bovell said. “And then we’d like her to go to hell. The hell in hell, where even the devil doesn’t want her.”
News 12 is not identifying the neighbor because she has not been charged with a crime.
News 12 attempted to contact her and her lawyer but has gotten no response.
