Illegal Sale of Body Parts Is Alleged

Two lawyers for families whose relatives were illegally cremated charged Wednesday that the funeral industry is reaping millions of dollars through illicit sale of body parts.

Thomas Frankovich said he and his law partner, Jeffrey Harrison, are offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to convictions in cases involving illegal cremations.

“Our research shows that there is an epidemic throughout the nation’s funeral industry of wrongful removal, sale and transportation of body parts across state lines and even overseas,” Frankovich said at a press conference.

He charged that some members of the funeral industry have performed “multiple cremations, mixing decedent ashes, removing body parts for sale,” and that there has been “theft of gold and silver from the teeth.”

Frankovich proposed that laws making such practices illegal be strengthened.

Officials of the California Funeral Directors Assn. could not be reached for comment.

Frankovich said he and Harrison represent more than 50 families who plan to file civil lawsuits against the operators of the Lamb Funeral Home in Pasadena, alleging that bodies were wrongfully cremated between 1983 and 1987.