Funeral director pleads guilty to theft after Indiana police discover 48 people's remains

Approximately 48 sets of human remains were found inside Lankford Funeral Home and Family Center

A funeral director in Jeffersonville, Indiana, has pleaded guilty to theft after 31 corpses and 17 sets of cremated remains were found on his premises.

Randy Lankford pleaded guilty to the over 40 felony theft charges for failing to properly carry out his responsibilities to properly dispose of bodies. 

Lankford, who will be sentenced in June, may face up to 12 years in jail and financial penalties towards the families of those affected.

Lankford Funeral Home and Family Center was first investigated in July 2022 after a powerful odor was reported near the building. 

INDIANA FUNERAL HOME BEING SUED BY FAMILIES OF THE DEAD 

Lankford Funeral Home and Family Center in Jeffersonville, Indiana. The funeral home has shut down after dozens of improperly stored bodies and cremated remains on the site. (Google Maps)

Police found dozens of bodies unrefrigerated in different rooms of the funeral homes. 

Randy Lankford agreed to surrender his and the facility's licenses in 2022.

The move came after Attorney General Todd Rokita's office filed for emergency license suspensions with the State Board of Funeral and Cemetery Service.

INDIANA FUNERAL HOME HAS LICENSE SUSPENDED AFTER 31 CORPSES WERE FOUND

The funeral home's air conditioning also went out, potentially causing others in the area to smell the odor. Many of the corpses had been there for an extensive amount of time. 

Many of the bodies found on the premises "were in the advanced stages of decomposition," according to local police.

The Jefferson Police Department announced in 2022 that the Lankford Funeral Home in Jefferson, Indiana is under investigation. (Google Maps)

INDIANA FUNERAL HOME FELL BEHIND ON PROCESSING BODIES, WHICH BEGAN TO STACK AND DECOMPOSE: REPORT

Additionally, Lankford repeatedly lied to clients about the disposal or cremation of their deceased loved ones.

In multiple instances, the funeral home provided cremated ashes to clients — claiming them to be the remains of their deceased loved one — only for the person's actual remains to be found in the building.

Cynthia Faye Cook and Jeffrey Lorey allege that Lankford Funeral Home gave misleading information about the cremated remains of their daughter, Nicole Dallas Lorey. 

They say the funeral home told them the company didn't have a container in which to send her remains.