Man charged with 64 offences in Hull Legacy funeral home inquiry

A man has been charged with 64 offences after a major investigation into a funeral directors in Hull in which police removed 35 bodies and a quantity of ashes.

Humberside Police began its inquiry into Legacy Independent Funeral Directors after a report of “concern for care of the deceased” in March last year.

Robert Bush, 47, formerly of Kirk Ella, East Yorkshire, is charged with 30 counts of preventing a lawful and decent burial, 30 counts of fraud by false representation, two counts of theft from charities, one count of fraud and another of fraudulent trading.

He has been released on bail and is due to appear at Hull Magistrates’ Court on 25 June.

A 55-year-old woman, who was arrested in July 2024 on suspicion of money laundering offences, has been released with “no further action to be taken”, the force said.

At a press conference earlier, Deputy Chief Constable Dave Marshall said there were 254 victims in total, of which 172 had been affected by fraudulent trading of funeral plans between 23 May 2012 and 6 March 2024.

He said the charges against Mr Bush included 30 counts of preventing a lawful and decent burial and 30 counts of fraud by false representation in relation to the deceased recovered from the funeral premises between 20 April 2023 and 6 March 2024.

The fraud charge related to human ashes between 1 August 2017 and 6 March last year involving 50 victims, he added.

Families have been updated of the development in the case and police have made initial contact with additional victims.

Mr Marshall thanked those affected for their “patience and understanding”.

“They have always been the priority and at the very heart of the entire investigation and this will remain, and we would please ask their privacy is continued to be respected,” he added.

He said the 10-month police investigation had been “complex, protracted and highly sensitive”, culminating in a file of evidence being submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service on 16 January, which had led to the charges being brought.

A month after the inquiry began, Humberside Police said more than 2,000 calls had been received on a dedicated phone line with “a significant number… understandably concerned about the identification of the ashes of their loved ones”.

The force confirmed it was impossible to identify any of the human ashes using DNA profiles which, Mr Marshall had said, would be “devastating news for families and loved ones”.

A dedicated helpline for anyone affected is available.

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