Briony Leylandand
Marcus White,South of England
Two funeral directors who kept bodies in an unrefrigerated room for more than a month have been found guilty of preventing lawful burial.
Richard Elkin, 49, and Hayley Bell, 42, were also convicted at Portsmouth Crown Court of intentionally causing a public nuisance and fraud.
Prosecutors said 46 bodies were kept in the uncooled mortuary at Elkin and Bell Funerals in Gosport, Hampshire, in 2022 and 2023.
The pair will be sentenced on 19 February.
Warning: The following report contains distressing details and images
CPSLesley Bates KC, prosecuting, previously said the bodies of two elderly men were found by court agents who were repossessing the premises because of debts including more than £13,000 in unpaid rent.
Ms Bates said: “Water was coming in through a leak in the roof of the mortuary room, it was running down the walls.
“The room was not refrigerated. The temperature within the mortuary room was no different to elsewhere in the premises.”
Ms Bates said one body, of William Mitchell, 87, “showed obvious signs of decomposition” after remaining in the room for 36 days.
She said Mr Mitchell’s family were “incredulous” when they learned his body had not been cremated.
CPSProsecutors said the firm continued to trade despite being insolvent and unable to meet its obligations.
Elkin was additionally convicted of making and using a false instrument by displaying a forged certificate from the National Association of Funeral Directors, they added.
Sharon Kirton, who was a client of the firm, said she was worried about how her mother’s body had been treated.
Speaking outside the court, she said: “Not knowing whether my mum was one of those bodies that was laying on the floor – that will never go.
“My mum said: ‘Make sure I’m looked after. I feel like I’ve let her down.'”
Rachel Robertson from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said the pair, of Nobes Avenue, “showed a grave disregard for the dignity owed to the deceased in their care and the trust placed in them by grieving families”.
The CPS said the mortuary was left unrefrigerated between June 2022 and December 2023 and many of the bodies were left there for more than 30 days.
Assistant Chief Constable Paul Bartolomeo said: “Our officers turned over every stone to bring Elkin & Bell to justice using legislation that is hundreds of years old.
“Sadly we are aware of other similar cases across the country
“We need new legislation rather than relying on common law. We also need better regulation.
“This can help ensure that all funeral directors act, as the majority do, with professionalism and compassion.”