The landlord of a Pittsburgh funeral house dumped the stays of hundreds of canine and cats in a landfill after their house owners had paid greater than $650,000 for his or her cremation and burial — then passed them again the ashes of unknown animals, in line with prosecutors in Pennsylvania.
Patrick Vereb, 70, the landlord of Vereb Funeral House and Eternity Puppy Memorial in Pittsburgh, used to be charged on Monday with legal counts of robbery by way of deception, receiving stolen assets and misleading industry practices, the Pennsylvania Administrative center of Legal professional Common said in a statement.
Mr. Vereb surrendered Monday afternoon to the government and used to be arraigned at the fees. He used to be launched on his personal recognizance, prosecutors stated.
A attorney for Mr. Vereb didn’t straight away reply to inquiries on Tuesday. Mr. Vereb has a courtroom listening to scheduled for Might 9, in line with courtroom paperwork.
He’s accused of stealing from over 6,500 consumers who paid for the burial and cremation products and services in their pets from 2021 to 2024, prosecutors stated.
“This example is tense, and can motive devastation and heartache for plenty of Pennsylvanians,” stated Dave Sunday, the state’s lawyer basic. “Our pets are participants of our households, and this defendant betrayed and agonized puppy house owners who entrusted him to offer dignified products and services for his or her loved cats and canine.”
A spokesman for the lawyer basic’s place of work stated on Tuesday {that a} former worker of Mr. Vereb’s tipped off the place of work and triggered the investigation.
The lawyer basic’s place of work stated that almost a dozen veterinary practices and companies helped in confirming that Mr. Vereb had amassed no less than $657,517 in charges from puppy house owners who have been promised a personal cremation for his or her puppy, however didn’t obtain their precise ashes.
As a substitute, Mr. Vereb disposed of most of the pets at a landfill whose location used to be now not disclosed and supplied consumers with the ashes of different animals, prosecutors stated. They didn’t say the place the ashes had come from.
The lawyer basic’s place of work stated that it has recognized hundreds of consumers from Allegheny, Armstrong, Washington, and Westmoreland Counties in Western Pennsylvania as sufferers. A spokesman for the place of work stated it does now not supply details about sufferers.
However Dustin Betlem, who runs Betlem Veterinary Services and products in Oakdale, Pa., stated, “We’re completely appalled and devastatingly blindsided by way of this scandal.”
Dr. Betlem added, “Keep in mind that we have been purchasers of Eternity Puppy Memorial from then till about two weeks in the past.”
On account of the massive choice of consumers who will have been impacted, the lawyer basic’s place of work has launched a website to connect to sufferers who can percentage their affect statements and obtain updates at the case.
On its website online, the Vereb Funeral House and Eternity Puppy Memorial presented “compassionate professionals” would maintain the stays in their consumers’ wishes for puppy funeral and memorial products and services. “Our venture is to lend a hand households in developing personalised funeral stories that honor the lifestyles in their family members,” the website online stated.
