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The Garzone brothers each own a funeral home and McCafferty was the director at a funeral home owned by his mother, the report said. "They have four or five deaths a day. 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. 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. The company sold the parts to treat burns, replace broken bones and provide for other medical needs, the 111-page indictment said. In other instances, the topic of donation was raised by Hess or Koch, and specifically rejected by the families. plundering 1,077 bodies, including those from Philadelphia. September 2005, prosecutors 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. 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. "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. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. "My husband was a World War II veteran of three years," said because there are bodies in Pennsylvania," Peruto said. $1,300. 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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 family members and one friend of deceased people whose body parts were sold without permission by Hess spoke at the hearing. [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. Prosecutors allege that the men took tissue samples from . Authorities said Mastromarino's company took bones and tissue from 1,077 bodies at funeral homes in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, making $3.8 million in illegal profits. We hope these prison sentences will bring the victims family members some amount of peace as they move forward in the grieving process.. Of the 244 bodies here, he changed the names on all but 48. He and Assistant District Attorney Bruce Sagel expect A second Garzone Funeral Home , at 4151 L St., also is charged. The highest prices . 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. 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. Hess, 45, and her mother, Shirley Koch, operated the Sunset Mesa Funeral Home in Montrose. 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. Lawyers for Ms. Hess did not immediately reply to requests for comment on Tuesday. 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. Much of the tissue was taken from people who were unsuitable donors because their age or the condition of their bodies, or because they had infections such as hepatitis or HIV, according to a 103-page grand jury report. "My job is to make sure he doesn't do additional time just A change of plea hearing for Koch is scheduled for July 12. Louis Garzone even ran this scheme, the grand jury said, in the case of five children killed in a 2005 fire in Tacony, a tragedy that drew an offer from the musician Stevie Wonder to pay for the funerals. of death on a death certificate signed by Gerard Garzone confirms Add to cart More. The grand jury also charged Mastromarino and Lee Cruceta, a former nurse who allegedly ran the cutting crew, with similar counts. The extent of any medical complications that resulted from the transplants remains unknown, she said. Prosecutors are calling for Hess, who had previously pleaded not guilty, to be sentenced to 12 to 15 years in prison. 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. Mastromarino is already facing charges in New York for allegedly cannot be certain of her claim because of the lack of records or a 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. Much of the work took place at the Louis Garzone Funeral Home, at Somerset and Jasper Streets in Kensington, where bodies were left on gurneys in a dingy alley behind the building, the grand jury said. The Garzone brothers surrendered their state funeral licenses CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. A federal grand jury indicted Hess and Koch in 2020. plea with New York prosecutors, he agreed to forfeit $4.68 million. by the Garzones. The defendants typically made up names for the donors and forged "He was victimized by the funeral directors. 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. The company sold the body parts to treat burns, replace broken bones and provide for other medical needs, the indictment said. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Folger, who brought a small U.S. flag to the court hearing. A Colorado funeral home director accused of stealing and selling the body parts of hundreds of people has pleaded guilty to mail fraud. directors were in charge of getting consent. The Daily Sentinel reportsthat Megan Hess faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison after entering the plea Tuesday in Grand Junction. This is the only funeral home my family has ever used. replacements and other procedures around the country. part is pursuing a civil suit, Abraham said. fight the charges, his lawyer said. REUTERS/Mike Wood/File Photo. The looted bodies in New York include that of "Masterpiece All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, 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. The pair charged customers $1,000 or more for cremations that never occurred. learned the true identities of only 48 of the 244 bodies, Abraham The defendants typically made up names for the donors and also forged family consent forms, the indictment said. The most comprehensive solution to manage all your complex and ever-expanding tax and compliance needs. corruption, body stealing and reckless endangerment. Explore life stories, offer tributes & condolences, send flowers or create a lasting online memorial for loved ones. Brothers Louis and Gerald Garzone, along with James McCafferty, See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. Selling organs such as hearts, kidneys and tendons for transplant is illegal in the United States. the families' knowledge or permission. Seven funeral directors there have pleaded guilty, including one whose funeral home allegedly removed parts from the body of the late "Masterpiece Theatre" host Alistair Cooke. it was so dirty," Abraham said. 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. All Rights Reserved. One of the cadavers was that of Alistair Cooke, the host of Masterpiece Theater, who died in 2004 of cancer. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. The defendants conduct was horrific and morbid and driven by greed, US Attorney Cole Finegan said. Megan Hess, 46, pleaded guilty to fraud in July. 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. Attorney Lynne Abraham said at a news conference. Nine-year-old Lyric Jones and her mother, Teran Christian, stand outside the courthouse in Grand Junction, Colorado, on Tuesday. The empty Sunset Mesa Funeral Directors & Donor Services in Montrose, Colo., on Oct. 24, 2018. The industry leader for online information for tax, accounting and finance professionals. The grand jury said five Philadelphia and 41 Pennsylvania hospitals implanted parts that originated with Mastromarino's operation. 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