Brothers Plead Guilty To Selling Body Parts
By Wyatt Earp | September 2, 2008
I'd recommend not going to Garzone for your funeral needs.
I challenge you to find a more disgusting, despicable story.
Two brothers who ran a funeral home and crematorium admitted Tuesday that they sold corpses to a company that trafficked in stolen body parts, a macabre scheme that left families aghast and wondering about the fate of their loved ones.
Louis and Gerald Garzone pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy, theft, abuse of corpse and welfare fraud.
No amount of jail time is enough for these animals. No amount.
The gruesome allegations read in court drew gasps, murmurs and tears from about two dozen people who had entrusted the bodies of their loved ones to the Garzones’ facilities in Philadelphia.
Real justice would be letting the victims’ families in the same room with these savages.
The brothers allowed at least 244 corpses to be carved up without families’ permission and without medical tests, prosecutors said. Skin, bones, tendons and other parts — some of them diseased — were then sold around the country for dental implants, knee and hip replacements and other procedures.
Some bodies were only torsos by the time the hacking was done, said Assistant District Attorney Evangelia Manos. (H/T – CBS3)
I feel so sorry for the victims’ families. They are showing much more restraint than I would have, believe me.
Topics: Philly | 8 Comments »
September 2nd, 2008 at 8:33 pm
I think this story tops them all. Unbelievable.
September 2nd, 2008 at 9:04 pm
This was an episode of Law and Order several years ago. Since most of their stuff is actually “ripped from the headlines” the real sickening thing hear is that this has actually happened before.
September 2nd, 2008 at 9:26 pm
Awful.
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:46 pm
What makes it even worse is that if the body parts were diseased the person who got them is now also diseased.
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:56 pm
Have we so quickly forgotten the funeral home that tossed the bodies of many loved ones into their back field and then charged persons for complete funerals?
BZ
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:58 pm
Garzone-ain’t that the guy who serves you in an Italian restaurant? heh.
September 3rd, 2008 at 12:49 am
Admiral – Completely despicable.
Trixie – Do these people honestly think they’ll get away with this? It boggles the mind.
RT – Agreed.
Momster – And how is the person going to know? They may never know. Unreal.
BZ – I remember that one, too. Can you imagine if it were someone close to you? I’d be breaking out the shotgun.
September 3rd, 2008 at 12:52 am
It’s not really surprising, as there are a lot of jackals in that field.
The Garzones were just more ‘bloody’ about it.
When my mother died, less than 12 hours later my sisters and I went to the cemetery where her parents were buried to purchase a plot.
We found a plot one step up from where our grandparents were buried and the salesman quoted us a price of $600.
Then my younger sister commented that it was perfect because it was right by our grandparents’ graves.
The vulture said ‘excuse me’, came back a minute later and said that he was in error and the plot was going to cost $1500.
My sisters later told me that my face went white and my right hand started towards my hip before I turned and walked away.
What I didn’t tell them was that I was (legally) carrying a 9mm and that was the absolute closest I’ve ever come to gunning someone down.
Considering that I’d had no sleep in 30 hours and my mother had died less than 12 hours before, my only surprise is that I didn’t just draw and empty the magazine into the ghoul.
So yeah, my instinctual answer is to take the Garzones out back and shoot both of them behind the ear.
With a Barrett .50 caliber.