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They are struggling with claims she created a product with a power saw and angry that she ultimately profited from the sale of arms, heads legs, torsos even whole bodies. The friend would then place the glass eye in an urn containing half of Dunlaps ashes and bury the urn atop the grave of Dunlaps father in Telluride, Colorado. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Her 69-year-old mother, Shirley Koch, also pleaded guilty to fraud and was sentenced to 15 years. N.Y. Nursing Home Under Investigation After Woman Declared Dead Found Trial scheduled for ex-Lake County coroner, wife arrested after - KKTV The emotional, daylong hearing brought to a close a five-year legal odyssey that began when the FBI raided the funeral home in February 2018, following a Reuters investigation that found Sunset Mesa to be unlike any other business in the country. Bailey-Kent Funeral Home, pictured at left, is one of two funeral homes owned by Shannon Kent now under criminal investigation. Her 69-year-old mother, Shirley Koch, also pleaded guilty to fraud and was sentenced to 15 years. Market data provided by Factset. Updated: 8:07 PM MDT September 14, 2021. Hess, along with her mother and father, are all named in a lawsuit, which accuses them of using a backroom to dismember cadavers with a power saw and stack body parts in coolers. Neither addressed the issue about the teeth. Like many, Hanson found out about her son Frederick during a phone call from an FBI agent. Licenses revoked for Pocatello funeral home - KTVB Both Reh and Cavanagh said they want to get the ashes analyzed at the University of Colorado to see if they actually belong to their babies. While Sunset Mesa legally is permitted to own and operate both businesses, Reuters found that there was no other active instance where a funeral home, crematory and body broker had the same owner and were in the same facility. In February 2018, Lina Cavanagh lost her baby at an advanced stage of pregnancy a loss that took its toll on her, both physically and emotionally. The most expensive prices were for an upper torso that included a head and arms ($4,000) and the cost of an entire body was $5,000, according to the price list. Megan Hess, a former Colorado funeral home director, chopped up over 500 . . Specifics of the scope of theFBI investigation are unclear. . Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers. Body snatcher, vile, pure evil, sociopath, are the words they used when asked to describe Hess. At Sunset Mesa, Hess charged $1,995 for a simple burial and $695 for a basic cremation, according to price lists reviewed by Reuters. At Donor Services, her body parts business, Hess can generate a greater return on the dead, a different price list reviewed by Reuters showed. Sam Tabachnik is a roving reporter for The Denver Post, focusing on stories outside metro Denver. Reuters Investigates offers several ways to securely contact our reporters. Escher said Koch, who embalmed and dismembered bodies, pulled teeth from some of the corpses to extract the gold in crowns or fillings. I go to sleep with the visions of him being dismembered with a power saw, said Ruthie Pettyjohn, whose sons body parts were allegedly sold. PUBLISHED 8:21 PM CT Apr. The Green Funeral. Downard Funeral Home Under Investigation, ISU Involved There are many events that have unfolded over the past couple weeks involving Downard Funeral Home, some including Idaho State University (ISU). In Colorado, the states organ donation program, Donor Alliance, said Hesss marketing language could be confusing to people.. by Mr. Leadville | Oct 26, 2020 | Leadville News. Build the strongest argument relying on authoritative content, attorney-editor expertise, and industry defining technology. In the late aughts, the town of Montrose, Colorado, made national headlines. Thousands more patients could benefit from life saving and healing eye and tissue donations.. Hes already facing charges of official misconduct and perjury stemming from allegations last year that he sent his wife Staci to multiple death scenes even though she wasnt authorized to serve as a deputy coroner. 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 No one returned her voicemails. A Medical Examiner can often discover hidden evidence of injury to explain a sudden death, or can document natural diseases to show that no foul play was involved in the death. No federal law prohibits the buying and selling of human body parts to be used in research and education. felt they were too heavy to be those of a stillborn child, and submitted them for analysis. The states Department of Regulatory Agencies said it has nine open complaints about Sunset Mesa higher than average for funeral homes in the state, said spokesman Lee Rasizer. But it provided an important public service, she said. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our. Teselle said, Whats shocking to me is that theres not an outcry for there to be more legislation, theres not an outcry for the government to regulate and license these people.. Hess' lawyer said she has been unfairly vilified as a "witch," a "monster" and a "ghoul," when instead she is a "broken human being" whose conduct can be attributed to a traumatic brain injury at age 18. Some of those family members are now questioning if the services were held free of charge while Donor Services sent some of the remains (body parts) to clients for payments without the knowledge and consent of family members. In reality, Burg added, they are just trying to get those bodies free and then they are going to chop them up themselves in parts and make money off the bodies.. Mabry said Koch told him the glass eye couldnt be removed after Dunlaps head was severed, embalmed and shipped to researchers. Megan Hess, 46, pleaded guilty to fraud in July. The fact that now the business is also making money from the sale of body parts if that is not being told to the family, it is unethical and probably illegal, if only as deception, said Robert Fells, general counsel of the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association, an industry trade group. We did not provide our messaging to be repurposed in this brochure, and are following up, said spokeswoman Erin Dolin. Colorado Ordway Funeral Homes Eaton Family Funeral Home Eaton Family Funeral Home in Ordway 202 E 3rd St Ordway, CO 81063 (719) 267-4221 Click to show location on map Zoom About Eaton Family Funeral Home We understand that losing a loved one can be a very stressful time. Two Colorado funeral homes are under criminal investigation after authorities found a unrefrigerated body and learned that at least one family had received a stillborn's cremains mixed. The Colorado Sun is a journalist-owned, award-winning news outlet based in Denver that strives to cover all of Colorado so that our state our community can better understand itself. The 20-year term was the maximum allowed under law. He has served as Lake County coroner since 2012 and was reelected to a four-year term in November 2018. Propel Funeral Partners makes acquisitions. TX Funeral Service Commission Investigating Golden Gate - Spectrum News Sunset Mesas operators, Megan Hess and Shirley Koch, were indicted by a federal grand jury in March for allegedly shipping body parts all over the world against the will of family members, who found out years later that the ashes in their homes were not those of their loved ones. Investigation into the allegations are ongoing with the Texas Funeral Services . Hess' mother, Shirley Koch, has also been indicted. Meme Eberspacher, Dunlaps niece, was at his bedside the night that Dunlap died. Thank you for thinking of me.. This all began when a severely decomposed body was reported by a state health inspector. I know these are not his ashes because his body parts went all over the country, Hanson said. Enter your email address to join 3,177 readers who subscribe to all Funeral Director articles. A human head and spine sold for $850, while a full pelvis all the way to the toes priced out at $2,850. A body bag was found to be leaking bodily fluids along with a container of animal remains which was also leaking fluids. A judge sentenced a Colorado funeral-home owner who carved up corpses and sold parts of them without families' permission to 20 years in prison on Tuesday, according to the Department of Justice. Seeing how this chapter is opening up again is incredible, its unbelievable. The lawsuit claims the three sold torsos for $1,000, a pelvis with upper legs for $1,200. On at least three occasions, Staci Kent allegedly responded to calls from law enforcement requesting a coroner at a death scene, according to the indictment. When asked if it contained her husbands cremains, she said, I dont know.. First published on Wed 6 Jul 2022 10.36 EDT. Kent also still faces second-degree official misconduct charges stemming from a September 2019 grand jury indictment in the Fifth Judicial District. And as of. Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the worlds largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. Andrew Scheid has been the director at . Authorities also uncovered multiple refrigerated bodies which were wrapped in sheets or blankets but did not have any tags or paperwork identifying them. You are looking at how to make money.. Torsos are a popular specimen these days, she wrote. They both plan to file complaints with the Department of Regulatory Affairs. Further, the van was holding two other bodies that needed to be removed.. NBC10 . A change of plea hearing for Koch is scheduled for July 12. A price quote Hess sent to an Arizona medical training lab in 2016 offered torsos for $1,000 each. No one returned her voicemails. Finally Reh and her boyfriend went to the funeral home with the expectation that they would see their baby. Colorado regulators shut Sunset Mesa down in February 2018, KMGH-TV reported. In February of 2018, Colorado regulators shut down the funeral home at the same time the FBI was investigating claims families did not receive the real cremains of their loved ones. Its really an underground industry that most people dont know about, said attorney Michael Burg. The brochure, provided to Reuters by Hess during the 2016 interview, continued this way: Every year, organ, eye and tissue transplants provide hope to tens of thousands of people suffering from disease, injury, trauma or blindness. It is also the only state that doesnt license funeral directors. Now its possible its not my baby in the urn, Reh said. GYPSUM The operating license for Kent Funeral Home in Gypsum has been summarily suspended by the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies following an investigation that revealed disturbing conditions at an associated funeral home in Leadville. At the focal point of the FBI probe: funeral director Megan Hess, who did not return Fox News request for a comment. Megan Hess, 46, pleaded guilty to fraud in July 2022 after a 2018 investigation that exposed her for selling parts of dead bodies that were brought to the funeral home for cremation. State Bans Coroner Shannon Kent From Private Business After Remains Copyright 2019 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. The conflict of interest of having a side business in body parts just leads to problems, said Steve Palmer, a funeral director in Cottonwood, Arizona, and former member of the policy board at the National Funeral Directors Association. A few days later, she was able to pick up the cremains, but like E.W., Cavanagh received no paperwork. She took orders for body parts via Hotmail, email records show. It is illegal to buy or sell organs such as hearts, kidneys and tendons for transplant. She was sold, embalmed and shipped out within just a few hours of her death, said Holloman. Copyright 2019 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. She operated a funeral home, Sunset Mesa, and a body parts entity, Donor Services, from the same building in Montrose, Colorado. Hancock is one of many family members who has learned the cremains she was given by the owners of Sunset Mesa Funeral Home in Montrose contained items and materials that were not her husband. Bankman-Fried can have flip phone, limited internet while on bail, US proposes, Biden assembles team of allies to boost re-election campaign, Reporting by John Shiffman; Editing by Paul Simao and Richard Chang, Michigan judge dismisses school staff as defendants in lawsuits over mass shooting, American Airlines, flight attendants union seek mediation in contract negotiations, Macron ends Africa tour with wish for fair reset of ties, Turkey's Erdogan dismisses opposition split and says his ruling alliance will stay on same path, Turkey's pro-Kurdish party calls for opposition unity after split, In Turkey's quake-devasted city of Antakya, an antiques seller is determined to stay put, Eni agrees deal with UAE's ADNOC as Italy rebuilds relationship, Exclusive news, data and analytics for financial market professionals. Owner of funeral home under investigation had history of violations Officials also found the "post-cremation remains" of 16 people, according . All rights reserved. In Colorado, there are few regulations to catch shoddy behavior, such as illegitimate body trading, by mortuaries. These illegitimate businesses are buying and selling body parts just like anything off the shelf at Walmart, added Teselle. The attorney, Carol Viner, asked Reuters to refrain from contacting Hess employees for any reason.. Legal Statement. According to Reuters Sunset Mesa Funeral Home had seen their call volume increase from 59 in 2015 to 128 in 2017. Colorado Funeral Home / Body Broker Continues Under Investigation The investigation of Kents funeral homes began in February after the sheriffs office received a complaint by a client regarding the handling of human remains. Holloman now deals with the guilt of knowing details of what happened to her moms body. They were arrested in 2020 and charged with six counts of mail fraud and three counts of illegal transportation of hazardous materials. Kent kept giving excuses, Cavanagh said. N.Y. Could, Lake County coroner turns in resignation letter, State suspends operations of Leadville, Gypsum funeral homes, 3 BULLETS TO THE BACK: The striking silence around a police, Last Season Hunters Harvested the Most Bucks in 21 Years | Outdoor Life, Republicans are barring medical boards from punishing doctors who prescribe ivermectin: report | Salon.com, Mead High School student gets musical Make-A-Wish surprise, Bruce Cassidy Defends Tuukka Rask After Tough Showing Vs. Kent kept giving excuses, Cavanagh said. It can't be fixed, said Hancock. This whole situation, oh, I thought it was part of my past.. Kent operates six funeral homes in the states high country, which also include Buena Vista, Fairplay, Idaho Springs, and Silverthorne. Selling body parts: Colorado's secret black market industry - KMGH (McGovern said no industry regulated by the Division of Professions and Occupations has regulators assigned exclusively to it.) Instead, the media was interested in the dark history behind the town's funeral home, Sunset Mesa. Two funeral homes owned by Lake County Coroner Shannon Kent are under investigation after law enforcement earlier this month found an unrefrigerated body, an abandoned stillborn infant, bags of unl Colorado funeral home owner sentenced in body sales case Its not something that can be fixed., Hancock was notified by the FBI that her husbands body parts had been sold without her consent. Access unmatched financial data, news and content in a highly-customised workflow experience on desktop, web and mobile. Both have become experts on the secret industry of selling body parts on a world wide market. On March 16, the director of the Office of Funeral Home and Crematory Registration sent Kent a letter of admonition after a state investigator found unembalmed, unrefrigerated bodily remains in his Gypsum funeral home more than 24 hours from the date of death. And much like E.W. LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A Jeffersonville funeral home is under investigation after the owner allegedly got behind on processing bodies, which began stacking up for an unknown period of. However, on Thursday, Colorado police arrested Shannon and Staci Kent after finding a decaying corpse in a funeral home they previously operated. It was kinda creepy., It is totally unregulated, said Burg. There is also evidence of Donor Services shipping at least 26 boxes containing body parts to various parts of the world in 2016 according to evidence that has been recovered. In Colorado and most other states, it also is legal for funeral homes to sell items recovered from dead bodies, such as gold dental work. No one would pick up the phone. On March 17, the unsealed indictment revealed that this donor services business would harvest the human remains and then sell them, illegally and without the families' knowledge. They cut him up in pieces and sent them all over the place.. Earlier this month, authorities from both Lake and Eagle counties encountered a strong odor of decomposition when they searched the Leadville funeral home, reads. Extra charges are assessed if a body is embalmed or a funeral director is involved. Funeral-home owner gets 20 years in prison for cutting up dead bodies Jeffersonville funeral home under investigation after police find Emmanuel Macron shared his vision of a renewed partnership with Africa in which it stands equal with France, as he concluded a tour where he has sought to dispel France's image as an arrogant former colonial power whilst bidding for future influence. Funeral Home Operator Jailed After Selling Body Parts of 500-Plus Hansons box included wires and what appear to be old batteries. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, ", Tina Shanon, whose mother was dismembered against her will, told the court, "I've worn many masks to cover the pain. A few days later, she was able to pick up the cremains, but like E.W., Cavanagh received no paperwork. The confrontation escalated when Shannon Kent allegedly called Lake County Sheriff Amy Reyes and threatened her with arrest for questioning his wifes decision not to use the body bag, prosecutors said.