Watchdog inquiry exposes chilling sexual abuse of bodies in UK mortuaries, calls for regulation

A chilling lack of regulation in England’s funeral services sector has enabled abuses in handling the deceased, an inquiry into the sexual abuse of bodies at hospital mortuaries revealed Tuesday (October 15).

The inquiry, headed by Jonathan Michael, was centered on hospital handyman David Fuller, who used his access to mortuaries at two hospitals in southeast England to abuse the bodies of at least 101 women and girls, ages nine to 100.

Fuller, a convicted murderer, committed the crimes while employed at the hospitals in Kent from 2005 to 2020, and is now serving a life sentence for the abuse and two murders dating back to the 1980s.

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The disturbing findings follow several high-profile cases, including an investigation by Humberside Police into a Hull funeral home where 35 bodies were improperly stored, resulting in multiple arrests.

Call for regulation

Michael called for the urgent establishment of an independent regulator to oversee funeral services after discovering troubling gaps in monitoring care for the deceased.

Michael said that assumptions about regulation had left the industry open to abuse. “It is clear to me that many people believe or assume that the sector is already regulated, and they are shocked to find this is not the case.”

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The report also found that private mortuaries, ambulances, and funeral homes lack sufficient oversight. While most funeral directors act professionally, Michael said the absence of a regulatory framework allows bad actors to evade accountability.

The report called for greater scrutiny “to safeguard the security and dignity of the deceased”.

Michael noted that, under current laws, anyone can set up a funeral business without oversight. “The fact is that anyone can set themselves up as a funeral director. They could do it from their home and keep the bodies of the deceased in their garage without anybody being able to stop them. That cannot be right,” he said.

With inputs from AFP