Kalispell Woman Charged with Theft for Fake Cancer Scheme Enters Plea Deal

A Kalispell woman who solicited at least $60,000 in fraudulent contributions under the pretense that she was dying of cancer entered a plea deal last week to a felony charge of theft.

Amy Elizabeth Glanville, 47, pleaded guilty Aug. 19 in Flathead County District Court before Judge Heidi Ulbricht, vacating a jury trial that was scheduled for Aug. 22.

According to the pretrial plea agreement, the state recommends that the defendant receive a deferred imposition of sentence for three years with a suspended fine “due to the amount of restitution owed,” which would be capped at $30,000. The conditions also state the defendant must remain law abiding, make restitution to the victims who donated through the GoFundMe account that was made on her behalf, continue mental health counseling and therapy and complete 75 hours of volunteer work.

Glanville was charged last December following a year-long investigation by the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office, which revealed evidence of approximately $60,000 in donations to her fake charitable cause.

Authorities said at the time of the investigation that total contributions likely amounted to more than $100,000, but the precise monetary amount was difficult for investigators to gauge because some victims chose not to pursue criminal charges, while intangible services like road trips to doctor’s appointments and hotel bookings were difficult to quantify.

According to charging documents, Glanville collected funds through several fundraisers organized through the Easthaven Baptist Church in Kalispell, online portals like GoFundMe, PayPal and a local charitable event at Buffalo Wild Wings between 2015 and 2020, convincing the local community that she had thyroid cancer.

In January 2020, skeptical witnesses contacted law enforcement after an Easthaven Baptist Church pastor posted on Facebook that an “obvious healing miracle” had occurred and Glanville’s pacemaker, which she received while awaiting a life-saving heart transplant, was vanished by God.

Detective Commander Josh Buls of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office discovered during the investigation that Glanville first reported having thyroid cancer in 2016, records state. She claimed she was ill until the end of 2020 when Lambert confronted her about his suspicions, the charging documents continue, at which point Glanville admitted her story was false.

In January 2016, Glanville’s cousin, Paul Ernst, organized a GoFundMe page for her, raising more than $24,000 from 251 donations. But he posted in November 2020 that she had lied about her illness.

The investigation did not indicate that anyone else was involved in Glanville’s scheme.

Glanville’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for Oct. 13 at 9 a.m. in Flathead County District Court.