Longueuil police have charged a 58-year-old woman with second-degree murder in connection with the slaying of a senior who once lost a child to a deadly arson.

Kathleen Livingstone, 78, was found dead Saturday in her Brossard bungalow. Police believe she was killed two days before her body was found.

In addition to the second-degree murder charge Ellen Dennett, 58, is charged with theft and the unauthorized use of credit cards.

"Arresting Dennett was relatively easy for police, because they claim that she kept using the credit she is alleged to have stolen from Mrs. Livingstone," CTV Montreal's Stephane Giroux reported Tuesday. "And by following her spending habits, they were able to trace her in downtown Montreal."

According to Giroux, Dennett was arrested at the posh Hotel Nelligan in Old Montreal, where she had stayed in recent days.

During court proceedings Tuesday, Dennett's lawyer did not seek bail.

Longueuil police Const. Martin Simard told CTV.ca in a telephone interview Tuesday morning that the suspect does not have a criminal record.

Police believe she was living with the victim for the past eight weeks or so.

Giroux reported earlier Tuesday that Dennett is believed to have spent her early years in nearby Verdun, Que., and later lived in California. Giroux also reported a family friend told CTV News that Dennett is a distant cousin of the victim's late husband Robert.

Dennett is a registered nurse who Livingstone offered room and board to in exchange for help around the house, Giroux said.

Prior tragedy left victim emotionally scarred

Born in Scotland, Livingstone had lived for decades in the home on Beliveau St. in which she died.

The victim also lived there when her teenage daughter was killed in a notorious Montreal arson in September 1972.

Linda Livingstone was only 19 years old when she was killed at the Bluebird Café in downtown Montreal, along with 36 other victims.

The loss of her daughter emotionally scarred Kathleen Livingstone and for decades she limited her contact with other people.

But in the months before her death, Livingstone decided to have more social contact with the outside world.

Amid health problems, she reached out to a community group for support, as she entered a phase of her life where she was increasingly dependent on a wheelchair.

Kevin Erskine-Henry of the South Shore Community Partners Group told CTV Montreal that he had been in contact with Livingstone in the months before her death.

He heard about a woman who Livingstone said was helping her out with tasks at home.

"She said at that time the person was now living with her and was helping do baking and helping her manage the house," he said.

Neighbours told CTV Montreal that Livingstone later had a falling out with the woman living at the house.

With files from CTV Montreal's Stephane Giroux