The remains of 11 infants were discovered at a recently closed funeral home on Detroit‘s east side Friday, police said.
State regulators received an anonymous tip on Friday, which led to the shocking discovery, reports WDIV-TV. When authorities arrived at the Cantrell Funeral Home on Mack Avenue, they found nine bodies in a cardboard box, tucked in a hidden compartment in the building’s ceiling. Two other bodies were found in caskets.
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According to the Detroit Free-Press, Michigan State Police brought cadaver-trained dogs to the building, but no other bodies were discovered.
“We do have names for some of the remains and we’re going to try to contact the families,” Detroit Police Lt. Brian Bowser told reporters.
Bowser said they could not determine how long the infant remains were stored at the building or how old they were at this time. Some were apparently stillborn, he said. Police are reaching out to the funeral home’s owner, Raymond Cantrell.
Cantrell Funeral Services now operates at a different location. The firm has not commented on the discovery, reports the Free-Press.
The funeral home was closed down in April after operating for 50 years, and was fined for several violations over the years. In April, state investigators discovered that embalmed bodies were being stored for months in an un-refrigerated garage and other areas. State officials said one body was kept for the first four months of the year without being cremated.
State officials called the conditions there “deplorable” after their investigation. They found 20 bodies, seven in caskets, three in cremation containers and 10 bodies lying on tables, left to decompose.
“Michigan residents trust funeral home directors, owners, and their establishments to follow the law, especially when dealing with the death of a loved one,” Corporations, Securities and Commercial Licensing Director Julia Dale said in a statement in April, reports WDIV-TV. “We will continue to aggressively hold every funeral home in Michigan to the highest standards of public health and safety when providing final arrangements.”
The funeral home’s license was suspended and manager Jameca LaJoyce Boone’s mortuary science license was also suspended. State officials accused the operators of “fraud, deceit, dishonesty, incompetence, and gross negligence in the practice of mortuary science.”
“In April, LARA suspended the mortuary licenses of both the home and its manager Jameca LaJoyce Boone for many violations including the improper storage of decomposing bodies of adult and infants,” the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs said in a statement Friday. “That suspension order remains in effect as does our investigation. We will use the evidence gathered today to add to our open investigation and will continue to work with local law enforcement as this case proceeds.”
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