Hull Funeral Director Admits to 67 Offences Including Wrong Ashes and Charity Theft
In a shocking case that has devastated an entire city, fraudulent funeral director Robert Bush has pleaded guilty to a total of 67 offences, including preventing the lawful burial of 30 bodies and providing families with the wrong ashes. The 48-year-old admitted to these crimes at Hull Crown Court on Thursday, following a police raid on his Legacy funeral home on Hessle Road in 2024.
Details of the Crimes and Court Proceedings
Bush had previously admitted to dozens of counts of fraud at a hearing in October, but the recent court session saw him plead guilty to the remaining charges. The offences span from 2012 to 2024 and include fraudulent trading related to funeral plans, as well as a specific charge of fraud covering the ashes of 57 people between 2017 and 2024.
Among the most disturbing allegations are four charges related to "foetus allegations" of fraud, where Bush presented ashes to women, falsely claiming they were the remains of their unborn children. Additionally, he admitted to stealing from charities such as the Salvation Army, Macmillan Cancer Support, the Dogs Trust, the RNLI, and WISHH, a local hospital charity.
Despite the severity of the crimes, Bush was granted bail under the same conditions as before. Mr Justice Hilliard, accepting a defence application for a pre-sentence report, stated that "everybody accepts a custodial sentence is inevitable in this case."
Impact on Victims and Families
As Bush left the courtroom, families followed him, shouting accusations and expressing their anguish. One victim, Michaela Baldwin, whose stepfather's body was found at the funeral home after they had been given what they believed to be his ashes, described the two-year wait for justice as "horrible." She said hearing Bush plead guilty was a relief, but his bail felt like "a kick in the teeth."
Baldwin revealed that her family has now received the correct ashes, with certification, and some plan to have jewellery made or tattoos done. She emphasized that Bush has made no apology, attributing his actions to "pure greed" and calling it "sickening."
Karen Dry, whose parents had funerals with Bush, called for tighter regulation of the funeral industry, warning that similar cases might be going undetected elsewhere. She urged the government to "pay attention to this case," stating, "If we've got a Frankenstein funeral director on Hessle Road, there's probably one in every city."
Scale of the Crimes and Sentencing
The sentencing hearing is scheduled for 27 July and is expected to last at least two days, with between 200 and 240 victim impact statements anticipated due to the vast scale of the crimes. Detective Superintendent Alan Curtis from Humberside Police highlighted that Bush was "trusted by people at a time they needed him most" and "exploited them," causing "utter devastation and emotional harm."
Laura Tams, deputy chief crown prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service, described the charges as "some of the most serious breaches of trust possible in the funeral industry." She expressed condolences to affected families, noting that learning their relatives' remains had not received proper care has caused "immeasurable additional grief and trauma."
Tragically, ashes recovered from the premises cannot be identified, leaving many families uncertain if they received the right remains. This case underscores profound failures in trust and regulation within the funeral sector, with victims seeking closure and justice for their loved ones.
