An Arkansas mortuary worker allegedly stole scores of body parts from cadavers and sold them through social media.
Candace Scott, 36, worked for Arkansas Central Mortuary Services transporting, embalming and cremating human remains. Her place of employment had a contract to dispose of cadavers that had been examined by students at the University of Arkansas Medical Services.
Authorities say in October 2021, Scott made contact with 40-year-old Jeremy Pauley of Pennsylvania through Facebook. She had found Pauley through a social media group for “oddities.”
“Just out of curiosity, would you know anyone in the market for a fully in tact, embalmed brain?” Scott allegedly wrote to Pauley.
Authorities allege that Scott sent Pauley an ear, an arm, lungs, livers, kidneys, hands, breasts, penises, fetuses, skin, skulls and one whole human head over the course of nine months of dealings.
In return, Pauley sent 16 separate PayPal transfers totalling $10,975.
Scott has been indicted on 12 counts, including mail fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property and interstate transportation of stolen property. She pleaded not guilty on all counts.
Pauley’s identity was not revealed during Scott’s April 5 indictment, but rather in separate state charges, including a felony count of receiving stolen property, a misdemeanor count of receiving stolen property and a felony count of dealing in proceeds of unlawful activities. He was also arrested in 2022 for abuse of a corpse.
“I think that the facts … underlying the indictment and in the indictment are uniquely egregious and objectionable and we believe there is going to be some significant public outcry as a result of this,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Jegley said.
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