Obituaries from the McCafferty-Sweeney Funeral Home, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. what was going on," lawyer George Vomvolakis said. IE 11 is not supported. The three funeral-home directors - Louis Garzone, 65; his brother Gerald Garzone, 47; and James A. McCafferty Jr., 37 - were accused of plundering 244 cadavers between February 2004 and September 2005. Two family members and one friend of deceased people whose body parts were sold without permission by Hess spoke at the hearing. Church Truck Drapes; Funeral Supplies . patients worldwide. otherwise healthy, prosecutors said. 2. California residents do not sell my data request. PHILADELPHIA (AP) - April 4, 2008 But prosecutors here are balking at any 2-for-1 deal. A Colorado funeral home director accused of stealing and selling the body parts of hundreds of people has pleaded guilty to mail fraud. (Reuters) - A second Colorado woman pleaded guilty on Tuesday to defrauding relatives of the dead as part of a scheme in which a funeral . When prodded by the judge, Hess agreed with the prosecution that she defrauded her victims, though she declined to go into detail. unbelievably craven nature of what they did," Philadelphia District Those body parts were sold to at least five processing companies and one major distributor. McCafferty, 38, received significantly less time compared to his co-conspirators - brothers . Mastromarino will also testify, if necessary, against his The operator of a Colorado funeral home who was accused of stealing body parts and selling them to medical and scientific buyers, making hundreds of thousands of dollars in what the authorities called an illegal body part scheme, pleaded guilty to mail fraud on Tuesday, the Justice Department said. Koch's change-of-plea hearing is set for July 12. In one such case, the donor McCafferty, 37, of Philadelphia; were arrested Thursday on Did you encounter any technical issues? FOR TRANSFERRING BODY ONLY. PHILADELPHIA - Three funeral directors sold hundreds of bodies to a former oral surgeon who allegedly collected the bones, tissue and skin from the corpses to be used in . [1/2]Megan Hess, owner of Donor Services, is pictured during an interview in Montrose, Colorado, U.S., May 23, 2016 in this still image from video. Investigators found 112 cases in which the three men charged indigent clients for services - then billed welfare as well. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. July 5, 2022. Thank you for visiting McCafferty Funeral & Cremation Inc. website. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers. Discovery Company. After the Reuters 2018 investigation, Colorado's legislature strengthened the state's oversight. One of the cadavers was that of Alistair Cooke, the host of Masterpiece Theater, who died in 2004 of cancer. by the Garzones. In one such case, the donor was HIV-positive and suffered from hepatitis C and cancer. DENVER - The United States Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado announced today that the operators of Sunset Mesa Funeral Home in Montrose, Colorado, were sentenced to federal prison for illegally selling body parts or entire bodies without the consent of the family of the deceased. plea with New York prosecutors, he agreed to forfeit $4.68 million. "No penalty is too harsh for these guys, for the just unbelievably craven nature of what they did," Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne Abraham said at a news conference. The Associated Press. The funeral directors were in charge of getting consent. Mastromarino has pleaded not guilty to the New York charges. "Meeting with hospice on the 4th opening the floodgates of donors," Hess wrote to a prospective body-part buyer in 2014. The company sold the parts to treat burns, replace broken bones and provide for other medical needs, the 111-page indictment said. charged Thursday after a 16-month investigation. A former Colorado funeral home owner was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison on Tuesday for defrauding relatives of the dead by dissecting 560 corpses and selling body parts without permission . authorities said. Funeral directors Louis Garzone, 65, of Philadelphia, Gerald Garzone, 47, of North Wales, and James McCafferty, 37, of Philadelphia, were arrested Thursday on thousands of counts, ranging from running a corrupt organization to forgery and theft of body parts. We are available 24 hours a day, everyday of the year for emergency death care. "We, by law, had to grant [James Garzone] his license," said Basil Merenda, commissioner of the state Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs. The cause was bone and brain cancer, said his attorney, Mario Gallucci. A Colorado-based funeral home director has been sentenced to 20 years in prison stemming from a litany of charges including fraud and illegally selling the body parts or bodies of approximately 500 individuals whose families did not consent to that practice.. Megan Hess, 46, who supervised the Sunset Mesa Funeral Home in Montrose, Colorado, recently pleaded guilty to mail fraud and aiding . "They have four or five deaths a day. A second Garzone Funeral Home , at 4151 L St., also is charged. See reviews, photos, directions, phone numbers and more for Mccafferty Funeral Home locations in Ambler, PA. . I exceeded the scope of the consent and Im trying to make an effort to make it right, Ms. Hess said in United States District Court in Grand Junction, Colo., on Tuesday, according to The Daily Sentinel. Several funeral home operators in New York have also pleaded Then amdk realised the luggage is overflowing with blood. From 2010 through 2018, they would meet with people seeking cremation services either for themselves or their loved ones, according to the plea agreement. 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Mom Who Vanished While Celebrating St. Patrick's Day in 2018, Missouri Man Killed 4-Year-Old Girl by Beating, Dunking Her in Icy Pond as Part of 'Religious-Type Episode', Sherri Papini, Who Once Paid Off Credit Cards with Donations from Hoax, Now Owes $309,688 in Restitution, Socialite Mom Pleads Guilty to Secretly Filming Minors for 'Sexual Pleasure' in Her Conn. corruption, body stealing and reckless endangerment. Screen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. The pair charged customers $1,000 or more for cremations that never occurred. The defendants typically made up names for the donors and forged or redistributed. REUTERS. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much Others were "riddled with infections.". The Garzone brothers each own a funeral home and McCafferty was the director at a funeral home owned by his mother, the report said. "He's going to plead not guilty, and from what I've heard, the amount that's been suggested for bail is excessive. Instead of cremating the bodies, she harvested heads, spines, arms and legs and then sold them, according to court records. body, but the Philadelphia woman believes the missing age and cause They were arrested in 2020 and charged with six counts of mail fraud and three counts of illegal transportation of hazardous materials. After the body parts were removed, the deceased were taken across the street to Liberty for cremation. Louis Garzone's attorney, Howard Kaufman, said he had not seen the grand jury report and so could not comment on the charges. One national law firm has clients who were patients at Temple, Hahnemann, Thomas Jefferson and Albert Einstein Hospitals in Philadelphia, Holy Redeemer Hospital in Montgomery County, and Shore Memorial Hospital and AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center in New Jersey. The most comprehensive solution to manage all your complex and ever-expanding tax and compliance needs. The stolen bones . All he was supposed to Written by Maya Davis. These two women preyed on vulnerable victims who turned to them in a time of grief and sadness. The looted bodies in New York include that of "Masterpiece One of the "cutters" who removed body parts told the grand jury that he once saw a body in the alley, covered with a blue "Astroturf-like material," a sparrow perched on the head. The Daily Sentinel reportsthat Megan Hess faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison after entering the plea Tuesday in Grand Junction. do was come and harvest the tissue and send the samples down to the Wetzel and Son Funeral Home Inc. 6902 Rising Sun Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19111. Hess then "sold those remains to victims purchasing the remains for scientific, medical, or educational purposes," the release added. Although taking care of these funerals is a tremendous honor, the owner of McCafferty Funeral Home's real passion is to help all people from different backgrounds get . The Garzone brothers surrendered their state funeral licenses A Colorado funeral home operator accused of illegally selling body parts and giving clients fake ashes has been sentenced to 20 years in prison By The Associated Press January 4, 2023, 12:16 AM However, it isn't clear whether what they were allegedly doing is illegal in any way . A human head and spine sold for $850, while a full pelvis all the way to the toes priced out at $2,850. The defendants typically made up names for the donors and also forged family consent forms, the indictment said. Even when families agreed to donation, the news release said, Hess and Koch sometimes sold the remains beyond what the family had authorized. About a month after the Reuters stories, the FBI raided the site and state regulators shuttered the funeral home and crematory. Mastromarino then falsified paperwork to change the causes of death, the age of the deceased and their medical history, the grand jury said. Ms. Koch has pleaded not guilty, but she has a change of plea hearing scheduled for July 12. Ms. Hess and her mother sometimes obtained consent from families to donate small tissue samples or tumors of their dead relative, according to an indictment in the case. As part of his Find 1 listings related to Mccafferty Funeral Home in Ambler on YP.com. of death to make it appear the body parts were more fresh, The body-part industry has been booming, growing from 200,000 transplants in 1989 to 1,200,000 in 2003. All rights reserved. The operator of a Colorado funeral home who was accused of stealing body parts and selling them to medical and scientific buyers, making hundreds of thousands of dollars in what the . Five indicted for selling body parts . "He was victimized by the funeral directors. A subscription helps you access more of the local stories that keep you connected to the community. The Garzone brothers surrendered their state funeral licenses last year but continued to run their two homes, Abraham said. Another cutter, Chris Aldorasi, Those potentially dangerous body parts were sold and transplanted into thousands of patients. Hess, 45, and her mother, Shirley Koch, operated the Sunset Mesa Funeral Home in Montrose. Of the 244 bodies here, he changed the names on all but 48. learned the true identities of only 48 of the 244 bodies, Abraham According to a report from the DOJ at the time of the arrests, Hess and Koch's mail scheme included shipping "bodies and body parts that tested positive for, or belonging to people who had died from, infectious diseases, including Hepatitis B and C, and HIV, after certifying to buyers that the remains were disease-free. Three funeral directors sold 244 corpses for about $1,000 each to a New York businessman who trafficked in the resale of often-diseased body parts, a grand jury charged Thursday. MONTROSE, Colo. When funeral directors Megan Hess and Shirley Koch were sentenced after admitting to illegally selling body parts from the Sunset Mesa . Megan Hess and her mother Shirley Koch defrauded over 200 families by handing over random ashes while selling body parts of deceased individuals entrusted to their funeral home. last year but continued to run their two homes in Philadelphia, "One of the cutters said it was like the back of a butcher shop, Thanks for contacting us. Seven funeral directors in New York have pleaded guilty, including one whose funeral home allegedly removed parts from the body of the late "Masterpiece Theatre" host Alistair Cooke. They want Michael Mastromarino to serve an additional 20 to 40 Some even had rigor mortis, the grand jury said. "Both Louis and Gerald continue to run their businesses, pretty much as they did before," the report said. The group also lowered the donors' ages and changed their dates Generally, a broker can sell a donated human body for about $3,000 to $5,000, though prices sometime . The extent of any medical complications that resulted from the transplants remains unknown, she said. to a former oral surgeon who allegedly collected the bones, tissue Families of the dead had no idea the bodies were being ransacked. In 2009, Hess and her mother, Shirley Koch, launched a nonprofit donor services organization called Sunset Mesa Funeral Foundation, a body-broker service operating out of the funeral home doing business that would sell body parts to third parties mostly for surgical training and other educational purposes. Hess, however, charged families to donate their bodies - $195, plus $300 more if relatives want cremated . One Bill's Auto Parts owner, died Sunday. The founder of that company, Michael Mastromarino, a dentist stripped of his license for drug offenses, and his partner, Lee Cruceta, also were charged yesterday. came home in one piece from the war. Dion Rassias, an attorney for the James A. McCafferty Funeral Home, at Frankford and Unruh Avenues in Mayfair, said James McCafferty Jr. was not a director at his mother's funeral home. 2023 Cable News Network. In some cases, the pair would ship bodies and body parts that tested positive for or belonged to people who had died from infectious diseases such as Hepatitis B and C and HIV after certifying to buyers that the remains were disease-free, the news release said. Charges also were filed against Louis and Gerald Garzone's funeral homes and the crematorium, but not the McCafferty funeral home. In fact, the grand jury said, the lack of oversight helped Mastromarino go undetected for years, and it recommended a raft of changes that state and federal overseers should make. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? The two men were expected to surrender to Philadelphia authorities this week. All Rights Reserved. July 5, 2022 9:58pm. said. Those charges are pending, but seven New York funeral- home directors pleaded guilty last year to helping Mastromarino steal from bodies. ", Some of the parts taken in Philadelphia came from people who had died of cancer, sepsis, HIV and hepatitis, the grand jury said. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Famous Brooklyn Funeral Home Selling Body Parts 2022. Mastromarino has been fighting the New York charges. Add to cart More. Hess initially called the whole affair a "legal travesty." Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. Attorney Lynne Abraham said at a news conference. They each pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud and aiding and abetting. made millions on the scheme, prosecutors say. So far, authorities have learned the true identities of only 48 of the 244 bodies, Abraham said. A burial vault is required for most cemeteries, but you may choose to purchase one online or elsewhere, if you'd wish. By The Associated Press. After Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy Chaffin made his sentencing recommendation, the lawyer for Hess, Dan Shaffer, urged a lighter sentence of about two years in prison. Mastromarino Two funeral home operators in Colorado were sentenced Wednesday for illegally selling bodies and body parts without the families' consent, the US Attorney's Office said. All he was supposed to do was come and harvest the tissue and send the samples down to the processors," defense lawyer Mario Gallucci said Thursday. GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (AP) A Colorado funeral home operator accused of illegally selling body parts and giving clients fake ashes was sentenced to 20 years in prison Tuesday by a federal court . funeral home allegedly removed parts from the body of the late The funeral According to authorities, they made hundreds of thousands of dollars selling off bodies . The three Philadelphia suspects were taken into custody and it As with other commodities, prices for bodies and body parts fluctuate with market conditions. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Buy this on Ever Loved. The funeral directors forged death certificates that said the donors had died of heart attacks or blunt-force trauma but were otherwise healthy, prosecutors said. July 5 (Reuters) - A former Colorado funeral home owner pleaded guilty on Tuesday to a federal charge of defrauding relatives of the dead by dissecting their family members' corpses and selling the body parts without permission, a practice exposed in a 2018 Reuters investigative report. It was not immediately known if the three funeral directors had attorneys. Brothers Louis and Gerald Garzone, along with James McCafferty, Rent space on your skin for thousands of dollars. "For one thing, cremations made it easier to deceive the next of kin.". CNN has reached out to an attorney for Hess for comment. The funeral directors were in charge of getting consent. South Carolina lawyer Alex Murdaugh has been sentenced to life without parole in the fatal shootings of his wife, son. The grand jury also charged Mastromarino and Lee Cruceta, a former nurse who allegedly ran the cutting crew, with similar counts. A former employee accused her of earning$40,000 by extracting and selling the gold teeth of some of the deceased as part of the macabre scheme, according to court documents. "There was no basis for us to take any action against James.". Access unmatched financial data, news and content in a highly-customised workflow experience on desktop, web and mobile. "For them, nothing was beyond the pale - not stealing flesh and bones from the dead or lying to the bereaved, not forging and lying on thousands of documents, not putting the public's health at risk," the report said. The defendants typically made up names for the donors and forged family consent forms, the indictment said. About 10,000 people received tissue supplied by BTS. The lucrative parts were Sell your breast milk for $1-$3 per ounce. Wales, and James McCafferty, 37, of Philadelphia, have pleaded not beauty. Both Hess and Koch originally had pleaded not guilty to the charges. Prosecution seeks 12-15 year prison sentence, Colorado funeral home harvested and sold body parts. In such circumstances, despite lacking any authorization, Koch and Hess recovered body parts from, or otherwise prepared entire bodies of hundreds of decedents for body broker services.. "One of the cutters said it was like the back of a butcher shop, it was so dirty," Abraham said. He said he anticipated that prosecutors would ask for a high bail at an arraigment today. The highest prices . Mastromarino - and the sensational accusations against him - first drew national headlines last year when he and three employees were charged in Brooklyn, N.Y., in a 122-count indictment. She also offered free cremations in exchange for a body donation. Megan Hess who operated the Sunset Mesa funeral home in Montroseand a human body parts business called Donor Services from the same building admitted in federal court Tuesday to defrauding at least a dozen families who had paid to have their late loved ones cremated. Get ready!!!! He said the state was investigating whether Louis and Gerald Garzone were still running their businesses without a license. who lost his oral surgery license amid unrelated drug charges, and Joseph, was plundered before his April 2004 cremation. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. The three funeral-home directors - Louis Garzone, 65; his brother Gerald Garzone, 47; and James A. McCafferty Jr., 37 - were accused of plundering 244 cadavers between February 2004 and September 2005. Funeral directors Louis Garzone, 65, Gerald Garzone, 47, and James McCafferty, 37, were arrested Thursday on thousands of counts, ranging from running a corrupt organization to forgery and theft of body parts. A Colorado funeral home operator accused of illegally selling body parts and giving clients fake ashes has pleaded guilty to mail fraud in federal court. "In many instances, Koch and Hess neither discussed nor obtained authorization for donation of decedents' bodies or body parts for body broker services," the news release said. Funeral directors Louis Garzone, 65, of Philadelphia; his younger brother, Gerald Garzone, 47, of North Wales; and James McCafferty, 37, of Philadelphia; were arrested Thursday on thousands of . The other location is at L and Lycoming Streets in Juniata Park. This is the cost to purchase a burial vault from the funeral home. All Rights Reserved. Two funeral home operators in Colorado were sentenced Wednesday for illegally selling bodies and body parts without the families consent, the US Attorneys Office said. We hope these prison sentences will bring the victims family members some amount of peace as they move forward in the grieving process.. In many instances, Koch and Hess neither discussed nor obtained authorization for donation of decedents bodies or body parts for body broker services, the news release said. The defendants conduct was horrific and morbid and driven by greed, US Attorney Cole Finegan said. "He was victimized by the funeral directors. According to NBC News, Hess and her mother now face 135 years in prison each. "My job is to make sure he doesn't do additional time just The funeral directors forged death certificates that said the donors had died of heart attacks or blunt-force trauma but were otherwise healthy, prosecutors said. team of "cutters" who stole the body parts, authorities said. "He was victimized by the funeral directors. Quick view $ 114.95 . Mastromarino plans to surrender Tuesday in Philadelphia and will The grand jury found that the three men collected more than $183,000 from those families and $84,000 more from welfare. One Philadelphia woman who believes she contracted hepatitis from a tainted body part is pursuing a civil suit. Mastromarino plans to surrender Tuesday in Philadelphia and will fight the charges, his lawyer said. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Megan Hess was sentenced to 20 years in prison and her mother, Shirley Koch, received 15 years for their involvement in the scheme to sell the human remains to body broker services, according to federal prosecutors. But instead of offering guidance, these greedy women betrayed the trust of hundreds of victims and mutilated their loved ones, Leonard Carollo, the acting special agent in charge at the FBI in Denver, said in a news release. In court documents, a former employee accused Hess of earning $40,000 by extracting and selling the gold teeth of some of the deceased, an allegation first revealed in the 2018 Reuters report. Donate bone marrow for up to $3,000. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. The grand jury report said, though, that James Garzone is not the one in charge. forgery and theft of body parts. $1,300. Michael Mastromarino, a businessman and former dentist, ran the scheme with help from a team of "cutters" who stole the body parts, authorities said. 1748 W Erie Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19140. The United States Attorney's Office for the District . Hess charged families up to $1,000 for cremations that never occurred, prosecutors said, and she also offered others a free cremation in exchange for a body donation. Lee Cruceta, 35, of Monroe, N.Y., has admitted to being Louis Garzone, 65, of Philadelphia, Gerald Garzone, 47, of North "They couldn't and wouldn't permit the dead to go to their graves with a shred of dignity," said District Attorney Lynne M. Abraham. To increase sales, Hess targeted poor and vulnerable families as they grappled with a relative's final days, according to government court filings. 1:59 PM EST, Thu January 5, 2023. Donate your sperm to earn up to $1,500/mo! In New York City, four men have been indicted for stealing body parts from a Brooklyn funeral home and selling them for transplant. corpse to let Mastromarino's "cutters" hack up bodies, without When asked to describe the crime in a United States District Court in Grand Junction, Tuesday, Hess said, "I exceeded the scope of the consent and I'm trying to make an effort to make it right," reported The Daily Sentinel. Mastromarino claimed that none of the deceased died in a hospital, in order to explain why there were no medical records, according to the grand jury report. GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. A Colorado funeral home operator accused of illegally selling body parts and giving clients fake ashes has pleaded guilty to mail fraud in federal court. Legal Statement. Few state laws provide any regulation, and almost anyone, regardless of expertise, can dissect and sell human body parts. "Hess and Koch also delivered remains to families with the representation that the remains were that of the deceased when, frequently, that was not the case," it added. All three men were jailed yesterday. The parts - bones, skin, tendons and spines - were taken from the deceased without family permission, in unsanitary conditions that one witness likened to a "butcher shop.". Keep reading with a digital access subscription. Megan Hess, who pleaded guilty to mail fraud, sold body parts without families consent in a business she operated with her mother, officials said. Funeral Home Operator Pleads Guilty in Illegal Body Part Scheme, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/05/us/colorado-funeral-home-owner-body-parts-guilty.html. By John Shiffman. Hess, 45, admitted on Tuesday that through her funeral home, located in the town of Montrose in the western part of the state, she defrauded at least a dozen families seeking cremation services for deceased relatives. A reporter seeking comment at their businesses was told to leave. was HIV-positive and suffered from hepatitis C and cancer. The empty Sunset Mesa Funeral Directors & Donor Services in Montrose, Colo., on Oct. 24, 2018. On his way to dispose the luggage, a amdk Samaritan saw the man struggling with the luggage and offered to help. The group also lowered the donors' ages and changed their dates of death to make it appear the body parts were more fresh, authorities said. Two Colorado funeral home operators who sold body parts or bodies in a scheme a prosecutor called "horrific" were sentenced to prison Tuesday, officials said.. Megan Hess, 46, was sentenced to 20 years in prison and her mother, Shirley Koch, 69, was sentenced to 15 years, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado said in a statement. Heres how prosecutors said the scheme worked: From about 2010 to 2018 Ms. Hess was in charge of Donor Services, a nonprofit body broker service, and Sunset Mesa Funeral Directors, which offered to arrange cremations, funerals and burials in the small western Colorado city of Montrose. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. Without knowledge or consent, the women disrespected the wishes of the grieving victims and degraded the bodies of their family members to sell them for profit, Carollo said. In any case, the documents say, on hundreds of occasions the funeral home operators would sell heads, torsos, arms, legs or entire human bodies. Colorado funeral home owners sentenced to federal prison for selling body parts without families' permission Judge sentences Megan Hess to 20 years in prison and gives Shirley Koch a 15-year . The funeral directors forged death certificates that said the GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. A Colorado funeral home operator accused of illegally selling body parts and giving clients fake ashes has pleaded guilty to mail fraud in . plea there last month. Mastromarino to plead guilty to just a few of the approximately Anyone can read what you share. The largest demand is for bone used in spinal surgery, but a growing sports-medicine business also has driven up demand for tendons, ligaments and cartilage.
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