Marion Graham Mortuaries funeral home director Elliot Maurice Graham, inset, is accused of giving families fake ashes and abandoned a mortuary with bodies inside the Jacksonville, Florida facility. He’s facing charges of grand theft and improper preservation of a human body charges. (Mug shot: Orange County Jail; Funeral home: Google Maps)
Investigators serving a search warrant at an abandoned funeral home in Jacksonville, Florida, found three bodies inside a mortuary, according to the state Department of Financial Services. A member of one of those families reportedly said what were supposed to be her grandmother’s ashes looked more like “chalk or ground kitty litter.”
Marion Graham Mortuaries funeral home director Elliot Maurice Graham, 49, also is accused of giving families fake ashes of their loved ones, said Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis. Graham is facing grand theft and improper preservation of a human body charges.
“We are going to do everything possible to put this guy behind bars for a very long time,” Patronis said in a press release. “Nothing is more important than family – and as our loved ones pass away – it’s always a difficult situation, and families are entrusting funeral directors to treat their loved ones with respect and dignity. These allegations indicate that this alleged criminal did the opposite. It appears he stole people’s money, doled out fake cremains, and abandoned a funeral home. We will aggressively pursue this former funeral home director and hold him accountable to the families he’s wronged.”
The investigation began after the Patronis’ office received a complaint about the funeral home. The office oversees funeral homes and mortuaries to ensure they are held to highest standards of respect and dignity when caring for the remains of the deceased.
