The industry leader for online information for tax, accounting and finance professionals. Selling organs such as hearts, kidneys and tendons for transplant is illegal in the United States. McCafferty Funeral Home opened up in December of 1970 and has had the honor to handle many high profile funerals including longtime Philadelphia Phillies broadcaster Harry Kalas. Market data provided by Factset. 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. Hess initially called the whole affair a "legal travesty." In Philadelphia, most of the bodies were scheduled for cremation 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. As part of a plea agreement, eight other criminal charges against Ms. Hess were dropped. Michael Mastromarino, who operated the now-defunct Biomedical Tissue Services of Fort Lee, N.J., ran the scheme with help from a team of "cutters" who stole the body parts, authorities said. A stout, ruddy-faced James McCafferty Jr. - the third of the Philadelphia funeral-home operators who participated in the sickening national scam to illegally sell body parts - was sentenced yesterday to 3 1/2 to 10 years in state prison. Tweet. Of the 244 bodies here, he changed the names on all but 48. The three Philadelphia suspects were taken into custody and it was not immediately clear if they had attorneys. She operated a funeral home, Sunset Mesa, and a body parts entity . and provide for other medical needs, the 111-page indictment said. 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. Funeral home owner who dismembered corpses, sold body parts sentenced In any case, the documents say, on hundreds of occasions the funeral home operators would sell heads, torsos, arms, legs or entire human bodies. Tissue Services of Fort Lee, N.J., ran the scheme with help from a 2023 Cable News Network. Add to cart More. Legal Statement. Indicted on similar counts were Brooklyn residents Mastromarino, who lost his oral surgery license amid unrelated drug charges, and Lee Cruceta, a former nurse who allegedly ran the cutting crew. forgery and theft of body parts. A subscription helps you access more of the local stories that keep you connected to the community. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Deli worker killed in apparent robbery on Upper East Side, Lori Lightfoot lost for failing Chicago not because voters are racist/sexist, Investigators want to exhume body of Alex Murdaughs dead housekeeper, Accused pedophile mayor called Pete Buttigieg his buddy and mentor, paid to have their late loved ones cremated. thousands of counts, ranging from running a corrupt organization to The two women also delivered cremated remains to families that did not belong to the families loved ones, the news release said. Colorado funeral home owner, mother get prison in illegal sale of body James E Fyfe Funeral Director. One Philadelphia woman who believes she contracted hepatitis from a tainted body part is pursuing a civil suit. what was going on," lawyer George Vomvolakis said. replacements and other procedures around the country. "One of the cutters said it was like the back of a butcher shop, The district attorney also charged McCafferty and Louis and Gerald Garzone with defrauding a state welfare program that offers help to the poor for burial expenses. Four Indicted in Case of Tissue Theft : NPR The empty Sunset Mesa Funeral Directors & Donor Services in Montrose, Colorado. A lawyer for Other charges against Hess will be dropped under a plea agreement, the Sentinel said. Philadelphia on Friday, but defense lawyer Charles A. Peruto Jr. 9 Body Parts You Can Legally Sell For Cash - Low Income Relief Police Find 31 Decomposing Bodies and 16 Cremated Remains at Funeral Home in Indiana, 'RHOSLC' Star Jen Shah Pleads Guilty to Fraud in Telemarketing Scandal, Everything to Know About 'Real Housewives' Star Jen Shah's Fraud Case, Jen Shah's Husband Could Be Liable to Pay $9 Million Restitution, Expert Says: 'This Is Their Debt', Andy Cohen Is 'Especially Upset' for Fraud 'Victims' After'RHOSLC' 's Jen Shah Enters Guilty Plea, Man Allegedly Driving San Antonio Tractor Trailer Charged After the Deaths of 53 People, 15 'Real Housewives' Stars Who've Been Arrested, Found Remains ID'd as Missing Colo. The defendants typically made up names for the donors and also forged family consent forms, the indictment said. Donate your sperm to earn up to $1,500/mo! ", The statement added that "These shipments would be through the mail or on commercial air flights in violation of Department of Transportation regulations regarding the transportation of hazardous materials.". Funeral home operators sentenced after illegally selling body parts The shipments went through the mail or on commercial air flights in violation of Department of Transportation regulations regarding the transportation of hazardous materials,the news release said. otherwise healthy, prosecutors said. Montrose, Colorado: A former funeral home operator pleads guilty to Add to Compare. All rights reserved. Former Colorado funeral home owner sentenced to 20 years for selling Mastromarino often filled in phony information on death See reviews, photos, directions, phone numbers and more for Mccafferty Funeral Home locations in Ambler, PA. . 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 transplants, a grand jury charged Thursday after a 16-month investigation. guilty and, along with Mastromarino, are set for trial on Sept. 2. of death to make it appear the body parts were more fresh, The lucrative parts were While the women sometimes received consent from families "to donate small tissue samples or tumors of their dead relatives," the New York Times reported that the pair supplied body parts for research even when families were never asked for their approval or rejected the request in advance. Inside the Horrifying Market for Dead Human Bodies - Business Insider Five indicted for selling body parts . She also offered free cremations in exchange for a body donation. conspiracy, they said. Seven Mastromarino, who ran a now-defunct company called Biomedical Tissue Services, is already facing charges in New York for allegedly plundering 1,077 bodies, including those from Philadelphia. An attorney for Koch, Thomas E. Goodreid, declined to comment. Bill's Auto Parts owner, died Sunday. years in Philadelphia, where they say his team of cutters plundered Funeral Home Operator Pleads Guilty in 'Illegal Body Part Scheme' 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 . by the Garzones. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers. All rights reserved. It was not immediately known if the three funeral directors had attorneys. certificates to make the parts appear usable, the grand jury "He 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. at least 244 corpses. Theatre" host Alistair Cooke. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Some even had rigor mortis, the grand jury said. Morgan Cemetery Auto Body Shops Auto Glass Repair Auto Parts Auto Repair Car Detailing Oil Change Roadside Assistance Tire Shops Towing Window Tinting. Hatboro woman facing charges after racist rant at pizzeria, Eagles wide receiver assaulted, robbed at gunpoint in Maryland, Tom Sizemore dead at 61 after suffering brain aneurysm, Man missing since 2021 was murdered, co-worker arrested: DA, Do not to buy Raspberry Rally cookies from eBay, Girl Scouts say, Brian Laundrie was 'emotional bully,' Petito family lawsuit says, Pa. woman missing since 1992 found alive in Puerto Rico, Alex Murdaugh sentenced to life in prison; defense to appeal, Woman has gun held to her head during home invasion: Police, Temple faculty union could hold no-confidence vote on Monday, Pennsylvania lawmaker says he won't quit amid sex misconduct claim. 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 . A human head and spine sold for $850, while a full pelvis all the way to the toes priced out at $2,850. By The Associated Press. 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.". appreciated. One 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 . [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. The income the mother and daughter earned from selling body parts enabled them to become the cheapest option for cremations in their region, increasing their supply of cadavers, the authorities said. How about a deal on full embalmed spines $950?. team of "cutters" who stole the body parts, authorities said.