A Montana fraudster who took possession of another woman’s residence in north Lincoln County on two different occasions was sentenced Monday, Aug. 3, in district court.

Diane Elizabeth Eglise-Beam, 57, of Wolf Creek, Montana, initially pleaded not guilty April 6 in Lincoln County District Court on a felony count of exploiting an incapacitated person or vulnerable adult. She posted $75,000 bail on March 12, according to an April 1 court filing. As part of her conditions of release, Eglise-Beam had to surrender her passport.

Eglise-Beam pleaded no contest June 15 to the felony charge. In a court order, District Judge Matt Cuffe reported the defendant entered the no contest plea while acknowledging that if the case went to trial, based on the evidence provided by state prosecutors, a jury could find her guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

At the defendant's sentencing, District Judge Matt Cuffe delivered a 6-year deferred term and a $5,000 fine. 

The defendant, her attorney, Nicholas Johnson, and state prosecutor Angie Rolando each appeared via Zoom Aug. 3 while county attorney Marcia Boris appeared in person.

In a July 27 court filing, Eglise-Beam objected to the $5,000 fine. She opposed a supervision fee because she reported she is living on a fixed income.

She also provided a written statement that became part of the court record for her sentencing.

In part, it read "I also want the Court to understand the circumstances I am living with," she wrote. "I am undergoing treatment for an aggressive cancer that requires ongoing radiation and chemotherapy, and that treatment has left me immunocompromised. My condition changes from day to day and is difficult to predict; this past week alone I spent five days in emergency hospitalization. My oncology team, working with regional hospitals and cancer centers, is helping me preserve as much strength and dignity as I can while I fight this."

In Judge Cuffe's sentencing order, filed Aug. 7, he ordered Eglise-Beam to pay the fine by Aug. 3, 2029. He also ordered her passport to be returned to her and allowed her supervision to be done by the Lewis and Clark County Probation and Parole office.

According to a May 5 court order, the defendant was allowed to travel to Houston for an appointment at the MD Anderson Cancer Center. The order allowed Eglise-Beam to be out of Montana from May 12 and return to the state on May 19. In another court order, dated May 18, that return date was extended to May 30.

A June 10 court order permitted her to return to Houston June 22 for more treatment and return to Montana on June 26. Another court order directed the county attorney’s office to mail the defendant’s passport to a PO Box in Wolf Creek, Montana.

In a June 11 court filing, it was learned the defendant was permitted to appear via Zoom due to her treatment for an aggressive malignancy.

The 70-year-old victim is a former attorney who founded a firm in 2006 in California to handle claims of elder abuse, fraud and unfair business practices. But she then became the victim of Eglise-Beam, who professed her love in an attempt to rob her of more than $1 million.

The extensive investigation, which spanned several states and multiple years, led to the charges against Eglise-Beam. Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office Det. Dan Holskey and Montana Department of Justice’s Division of Criminal Investigation Agent Christopher Benson led the query.

The victim suffered a serious head injury in a motorcycle crash in 2016. The injury forced the woman to retire from her career. She also suffered from other physical injuries and a diagnosed mental illness. 

Agent Benson reported the woman was dependent on a caregiver and vulnerable to exploitation. The woman, living in Palm Desert, California at the time, met Eglise-Beam in July 2019 through an online dating site and they began a romantic relationship.

The court filing alleged Eglise-Beam convinced the woman to sell her California residence and law firm, liquidate her retirement accounts so she could move to Northwest Montana and buy property. The victim bought a 63-acre property with a residence and other buildings in September 2019 in Rexford. The purchase price was $769,000.

The couple committed to living together and the victim agreed to put both their names as joint tenants with the right of survivorship on the Rexford property deed.

Investigators say Eglise-Beam didn’t own a home at the time, had few assets and vehicles and not much cash.

Then, in August 2020, the defendant persuaded the woman to grant her general durable power of attorney. The woman said Eglise-Beam was then able to take money from her bank accounts, Individual Retirement Accounts and money after the woman sold her law firm. The woman also said the defendant convinced her to deed the Rexford property to her.

The victim then filed a lawsuit in September 2020 to recover the title to the Rexford property. The suit was settled in October 2020 and in December, Eglise-Beam deeded the property back to the victim.

But investigators allege that Eglise-Beam was not done manipulating the woman and convinced her to deed the property back to her, which occurred in March 2021. The victim said Eglise-Beam returned to the Rexford property early in 2021 and professed her love to the woman. She also said she wanted to live and work with the woman for the rest of their lives.

The alleged victim relented and allowed Eglise-Beam to move back in with her. In April 2021, investigators allege the defendant drove the victim back to California, dropped her off at a retirement home, leaving the woman with few assets.

The woman continued her fight to recover her property when she hired a law firm. A lawyer, who was not specifically identified, was supposed to record a notice of “lis pendens” with the Lincoln County Clerk and Recorder, but never did.

A lis pendens is a recorded notice of pending litigation concerning real property, designed to warn potential buyers or lenders that the property is subject to a lawsuit. It prevents the transfer or refinancing of the property until the legal dispute is resolved.

Without the notice, Eglise-Beam sold the Rexford property to other buyers May 25, 2021, for $1.4 million. Agent Benson reported the defendant netted $1.3 million in the sale.

The alleged victim did not give up her quest to reclaim the money from the sale of the Rexford property and hired another law firm. She also sought to get compensation from the law firm that failed to record the “lis pendens” notice.

The new law firm traced the sale of the Rexford property and learned Eglise-Beam had created a limited liability company (LLC). The company bought land in Ravalli County, Montana with the money from the Rexford sale. The LLC was named “Great Northern Wilderness LLC” and had an address in Houston, Texas. Its registered agent was a lawyer in Whitefish, who was also not identified in the charging document.

On Aug. 5, 2021, the LLC received a deed to a home on a 20-acre parcel near Darby. Agent Benson said it appeared Eglise-Beam used the money from the Rexford sale to buy the Darby property and used the LLC to hide the transaction.

The victim’s lawyer discovered Eglise-Beam’s actions and compelled her to give the Darby property to the woman, according to the court filing. A settlement was reached in June 2023 with the defendant deeding the land back to the former attorney.

Editor's Note: This story was updated to correct the date bail was posted to March 12, and to clarify that the defendant appeared for her Aug. 3 hearing over Zoom.