Deputies attempting to evict the owner of a South Georgia funeral home made a gruesome discovery over the weekend: 18 decomposing bodies, including those of children, were found in a cooler, according to investigators.
The Coffee County Sheriff’s Office deputies were serving an eviction notice Saturday at Johnson Funeral Home on U.S. Highway 441 South when the remains were located. The sheriff’s office then asked for assistance from the GBI in the investigation. The bodies were in “various stages of decomposition,” the GBI said.
The funeral home’s director, Chris Johnson, 39, of Douglas, was arrested and charged with 17 counts of abuse of a dead body.
Johnson had failed to pay rent, leading to the eviction, according to investigators. Court documents state Johnson failed to make July and August payments on the property. On Saturday, deputies found 18 bodies, a dog and a cat stored in the mortuary cooler. According to law enforcement, “more than one child” was among those found, and the bodies were not stored properly.
After the discovery, the coroner and the Douglas Fire Department’s hazmat team were called to the scene to recover the remains.
Arrest warrants state that Johnson “knowingly and willfully defaced a dead body while the body is prepared for burial, showing, or cremation in a funeral establishment.”
The warrants further claim that Johnson’s “willful negligence in his duties as a funeral home director and intentional disregard of proper storage” led to remains being kept for excessive periods, resulting in severe disfigurement of 17 bodies.
Investigators said they believe additional charges will be filed in the case. Johnson was denied bail at his first court appearance and was being held in the Coffee County jail.
An answering service for the funeral home said no one was available Monday to discuss the case and referred calls to the Coffee sheriff’s office.
Work continued Monday to identify those whose remains were found and notify their family members. Some relatives told investigators they had previously received ashes for their loved ones, even though their bodies were still in the cooler, investigators said. It was unknown what ashes those family members might have been given.
The most recent obituary on the funeral home’s website is for a man who died Oct. 4. No employees are listed on the website’s staff page.
“We provide individualized funeral services designed to meet the needs of each family,” the Johnson Funeral Home website states. “Our staff of dedicated professionals is available to assist you in making funeral service arrangements. From casket choices to funeral flowers, we will guide you through all aspects of the funeral service.”
Johnson was issued a license as a funeral service apprentice in July 2014, according to the Georgia Secretary of State office, which handles professional licensing.
The apprentice license expired in March 2016, but in February of that year, Johnson received his license to serve as a funeral director, records show. That license remained active Monday.
In January 2016, Johnson became a licensed embalmer, according to licensing records.
No complaints against Johnson had been filed with the secretary of state, according to the agency’s website.
Earlier this year, Johnson ran for Coffee County coroner but was defeated in the May primary by Brandon Musgrove, receiving just under 29% of the vote. After the election, Johnson announced plans to run again in 2028, stating, “I will use these next four years to grow with each and every one of you.”
In a separate, highly publicized case in Georgia, Ray Brent Marsh pleaded guilty to 787 counts of theft, abuse of a corpse, burial service fraud and making false statements in 2004. Marsh previously ran the Tri-State Crematory in the Noble community in Walker County, where the remains of 334 people were found in 2002. Marsh was sentenced to 12 years in prison and was released in 2016.
Anyone with information for investigators is asked to submit the information via the “See Something, Send Something” mobile app. Information can also be submitted by calling 1-800-597-TIPS (8477) or going online at https://gbi.georgia.gov/submit-tips-online.
— AJC staff reporter Alexis Stevens reported from Atlanta and AJC freelance reporter Kristen Kitchens reported from Coffee County.
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