A US funeral director has been stripped of his licence after a 6ft 7ins man's legs were cut off so the body would fit inside the coffin.
A worker used an electric saw on James Hines, 60, a preacher and musician, without the family's permission, reports the Daily Mirror.
The South Carolina Board of Funeral Service closed the firm in Allendale and fined undertaker Michael Cave the equivalent of £250.
Mr Hines's widow, Ann, said the case made her feel as if her husband, who died in October 2004, "had died all over again".
"It's just like pulling the scab off an old sore. I was kind of like smoothing things out. But now it's like starting all over again," she said.
The body was exhumed and a criminal investigation opened after police heard rumours about the case, with the coroner's office confirming "undesirable evidence" had been found.
Hines' widow said investigators told her that his legs had been cut off between the ankle and calf, and his feet had been placed inside the casket.
Ann Hines told police that only the top half of the lid was open at the funeral. She had picked a standard size coffin and nobody had suggested a bigger one.
At his funeral, several people, including one of Hines' five children, said the casket looked too small.
Source : Ananova
A worker used an electric saw on James Hines, 60, a preacher and musician, without the family's permission, reports the Daily Mirror.
The South Carolina Board of Funeral Service closed the firm in Allendale and fined undertaker Michael Cave the equivalent of £250.
Mr Hines's widow, Ann, said the case made her feel as if her husband, who died in October 2004, "had died all over again".
"It's just like pulling the scab off an old sore. I was kind of like smoothing things out. But now it's like starting all over again," she said.
The body was exhumed and a criminal investigation opened after police heard rumours about the case, with the coroner's office confirming "undesirable evidence" had been found.
Hines' widow said investigators told her that his legs had been cut off between the ankle and calf, and his feet had been placed inside the casket.
Ann Hines told police that only the top half of the lid was open at the funeral. She had picked a standard size coffin and nobody had suggested a bigger one.
At his funeral, several people, including one of Hines' five children, said the casket looked too small.
Source : Ananova
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