The transfers were done through Sunset Mesa Funeral Foundation and Donor Services, authorities said. Christian's grandfather was one of the victims at Sunset Mesa Funeral Home. A grand jury indictment said that from 2010 through 2018, Hess and Koch offered to cremate bodies and provide the remains to families at a cost of $1,000 or more, but many of the cremations never occurred. A human head and spine sold for $850, while a full pelvis all the way to the toes priced out at $2,850. 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. 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. Mastromarino pleaded guilty to 14 counts that include enterprise Frequently, they delivered cremated remains to families with the suggestion they were the remains of their relative when, in fact, they were not, according to the indictment. Philadelphia, Peruto said. 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. Like Gore, Rathburn would also be convicted but in federal court of fraud for selling and transporting infected body parts. of Philadelphia, and Gerald Garzone, 47, of North Wales, along with James McCafferty, 37, of Philadelphia, provided the bodies to Michael Mastromarino and . The Sunset Mesa Funeral Home would charge $1,000 or more for cremation services, but often failed to carry out the work, authorities said. The group also lowered the donors' ages and changed their dates A funeral home in Colorado has been investigated for cutting off body parts from its clients and selling them. Megan Hess, 45, admitted to a single count of mail fraud and aiding and abetting, the Department of Justice announced in a press release on Tuesday. Add to cart More. Louis Garzone's attorney, Howard Kaufman, said he had not seen the grand jury report and so could not comment on the charges. IE 11 is not supported. They told the judge that while they were still emotionally reeling from the episode and wanted to learn more details about what occurred, they welcomed the news that Hess had decided to plead guilty. 1748 W Erie Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19140. "I love Louis.". Instead of cremating the bodies, court records show, her body broker company harvested heads, spines, arms and legs and then sold them, mostly for surgical training and other educational purposes. Hess forged dozens of body donor consent forms, federal investigators found. Thank you for visiting McCafferty Funeral & Cremation Inc. website. Subscribe to stay connected to Tucson. A human head and spine sold for $850, while a full pelvis all the way to the toes priced out at $2,850. On dozens of occasions, Hess and Koch transferred bodies or body parts to third parties for research without families knowledge, according to the U.S. Justice Department. "He's going to plead not guilty, and from what I've heard, the amount that's been suggested for bail is excessive. As with other commodities, prices for bodies and body parts fluctuate with market conditions. The 244 bodies fetched about $1,000 each, the grand jury found, "One of the cutters said it was like the back of a butcher shop, it was so dirty," Abraham said. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers. replacements and other procedures around the country. $ 124.95 . Published Dec 19, 2008. with the body parts being transplanted in unsuspecting medical parts, Peruto said. Few state laws provide any regulation, and almost anyone, regardless of expertise, can dissect and sell human body parts. Auto Body Shops Auto Glass Repair Auto Parts Auto Repair Car Detailing Oil Change Roadside Assistance Tire Shops Towing Window Tinting. Ms. Koch has pleaded not guilty, but she has a change of plea hearing scheduled for July 12. An attorney for Koch, Thomas E. Goodreid, declined to comment. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. The funeral Cruceta, who lives in Monroe, N.Y., said he believes his client is Wales, and James McCafferty, 37, of Philadelphia, have pleaded not team of "cutters" who stole the body parts, authorities said. "My job is to make sure he doesn't do additional time just by the Garzones. See reviews, photos, directions, phone numbers and more for Mccafferty Funeral Home locations in Ambler, PA. . About 10,000 people received tissue supplied by BTS. Add to Wishlist . 20 years for crimes in both states. 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. July 5, 2022. Mobi Medical Supply also offers quality mortuary stretchers and cots for the funeral home and removal services industry. Mastromarino has been fighting the New York charges. 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 . They want Michael Mastromarino to serve an additional 20 to 40 Others were "riddled with infections.". One woman who believes she contracted hepatitis from a tainted body part is pursuing a civil suit, Abraham said. Updated The women ran Sunset Mesa Funeral Home in Montrose, Colorado. 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. Hess and Koch also shipped bodies and body parts that tested positive for, or belonged to people who died from, infectious diseases including Hepatitis B and C, and HIV, despite certifying to buyers that the remains were disease-free, authorities said. The Garzone brothers each own a funeral home and McCafferty was the director at a funeral home owned by his mother, the report said. Colorado Funeral Home Director Sentenced to 20 Years in Jail for Illegally Selling Body Parts. Meeting with hospice on the 4th opening the floodgates of donors, Hess wrote to a prospective body-part buyer in 2014. Those potentially dangerous body parts were sold and transplanted into thousands of patients. Charges also were filed against Louis and Gerald Garzone's funeral homes and the crematorium, but not the McCafferty funeral home. According to authorities, they made hundreds of thousands of dollars selling off bodies . beauty. 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. A change of plea hearing for Koch, who initially pleaded not guilty, is scheduled for July 12 added the outlet. The 244 bodies fetched about $1,000 each, the grand jury found, with the body parts being transplanted in unsuspecting medical patients worldwide. Copyright 2023 WPVI-TV. During the hearing, the judge asked Hess to describe in her own words the crimes she committed. The looted bodies in New York include that of "Masterpiece "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. She also offered free cremations in exchange for a body donation. In a cruel twist, the mother-and-daughter team also repeatedly lied to grieving families about the status of their loved one's bodies or flat out ignored their wishes, said the DOJ. 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. Dozens of patients, including some from Philadelphia and New Jersey, said they contracted hepatitis C after getting a transplant. While the mostly poor families thought their loved ones were for days, sometimes in alleys beside the funeral home, until a 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. FBI agents found that Hess forged dozens of body-donor consent forms. CNN has reached out to an attorney for Hess for comment. 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. Written by Maya Davis. 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. unbelievably craven nature of what they did," Philadelphia District Rent space on your skin for thousands of dollars. Lee Cruceta, 35, of Monroe, N.Y., has admitted to being Folger, who brought a small U.S. flag to the court hearing. Human Corpse Being Transported to Funeral Home Ejected from Van in Pileup on N.J. Freeway. 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 . Mastromarino is already facing charges in New York for allegedly Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? A grand jury indictment charges that they were paid $1,000 per 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. "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. In any case, the documents say, on hundreds of occasions the funeral home operators would sell heads, torsos, arms, legs or entire human bodies. "No penalty is too harsh for these guys, for the just funeral home allegedly removed parts from the body of the late The extent of any medical complications that resulted from the transplants remains unknown, she said. Get ready!!!! "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. July 5, 2022 9:58pm. her fear. The stolen bones, skin and tissue which are nearly impossible to trace from donor to recipient because of forged documents were transplanted in unsuspecting medical patients worldwide, the grand jury in Philadelphia found. Mastromarino is already facing charges in New York for allegedly plundering 1,077 bodies, including those from Philadelphia. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, Chopped into pieces, thrown into luggage; one of the accomplices chose to dump the luggage in little India. fight the charges, his lawyer 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 . what was going on," lawyer George Vomvolakis said. The grand jury report said, though, that James Garzone is not the one in charge. "It seems like this in this case . The three men were paid $1,000 for each body by Biomedical Tissue Services of Fort Lee, N.J., the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office said. Prior to the raid, the cost of purchasing an arm and shoulder was $600. About a month after the Reuters stories, the FBI raided the site and state regulators shuttered the funeral home and crematory. Screen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. In 2022 Ken Matthews was ranked #70 of the 100 most important Talk Radio Show Hosts in America by the radio industry's TALKERS magazine. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Bill's Auto Parts owner, died Sunday. Then amdk realised the luggage is overflowing with blood. The black-market sales went on from at least February 2004 through September 2005, prosecutors said. at least 244 corpses. Church Truck Drapes; Funeral Supplies . In other instances, the topic of donation was raised by Hess or Koch, and specifically rejected by the families. was not immediately clear if they had attorneys. If you wish to speak to Mark McCafferty right away please call 215-531-5014 or 215-432-8339 (cell) or 267-978-8869 (cell). Mastromarino to plead guilty to just a few of the approximately State Automobile Insurance Co. sued Garzone Funeral Home Inc. and its owner in Pennsylvania on Thursday, seeking to avoid indemnity for a host of lawsuits over the harvesting and sale of body . All rights reserved. part is pursuing a civil suit, Abraham said. 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. PHILADELPHIA (AP) - April 4, 2008 But prosecutors here are balking at any 2-for-1 deal. Experts estimate that a single body can be worth $100,000 in parts, and the industry as a whole has topped $1 billion in revenue per year. 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. They took remains without permission from 244 cadavers, an indictment says. Sell your breast milk for $1-$3 per ounce. 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. Other charges against Hess will be dropped under a plea agreement, the Sentinel said. Three Philadelphia funeral-home directors were charged yesterday with turning their businesses into gruesome human chop shops that pilfered bones and tissue from the dead to fuel a booming, $1 billion transplant industry. Thanks for contacting us. Find the indictment, photos, past coverage and more at http://go.philly.com/bodyparts EndText, By Troy Graham and Dwight Ott, Inquirer Staff Writers. He has agreed to help locate records for the families and A spokeswoman for the Justice Department and a lawyer for Ms. Koch declined to comment on the plea agreement. 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"He was victimized by the funeral directors. cutter arrived, authorities said. A former Colorado funeral home owner pleaded guilty to secretly . 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 judge.
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