Robert Bush, the proprietor of Legacy funeral services, has admitted to breaching the trust of numerous families on an "industrial scale," a court heard during his sentencing.
Bush was apprehended at Heathrow Airport days after the discovery of desecrated remains at his premises in Hessle Road. Investigators found that most of the remains were of individuals over 60 years old, with approximately six bodies awaiting cremation. Shockingly, one body had been on-site for a full year.
Victim impact statements presented in court detailed the profound distress experienced by the bereaved. Karen King described how she was given the ashes of her father, Norman Bridger, by Bush, only to later learn they were not his. She stated, "I now feel violated that I have had some unknown person's ashes so close to me."
Kathryn Howard, whose partner Jonathan Butler died at the age of 73, shared her devastation upon learning his body had been left at Bush's facility. She told the court that an apology would be insufficient and that she would "never, ever, get over this."
Bush reportedly confessed to officers that his daughter, who was traveling with him, was unaware of his actions and that he had "deceived everyone." The funeral home has been described as a "horror scene" by attendees of the sentencing hearing.
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