Funeral Director Charged With Stealing From Widow: Police Suspect More Victims

Maureen Purcell is accused of theft

Louisville, Kentucky

A funeral home director is facing charges after police say she stole thousands of dollars from an elderly widow and now, police believe there may be more victims.

According to Louisville Metro Police, the funeral director, Maureen Purcell, met the 89-year-old victim when she came into Ratterman Brothers Funeral Home in St. Matthews. Police say the victim went there to have her husband's remains cremated. They say Purcell then befriended the woman, knowing she had no family nearby.

Police say Purcell was able to get power of attorney over the victim, and at that point started stealing from her almost every day.

Purcell was released from jail on her own recognizance. Police say she admitted to stealing $8,000 out of the $10,000 that she's charged with.

The Ratterman Brothers Funeral Home says they are completely surprised by the arrest. Purcell has a bad credit history, and has had several lawsuits filed against her.

Ask Around Before Trying Askbury Referral Service

Tampa, Florida

Picture this, if you will. You move to a new city and find yourself in need of a funeral home. As a newbie in town, unfamiliar with the area, you simply do not know what to do. Ah, but wait, you see an advertisement on the side of a truck for AskBury Referral Service. After taking a closer look, you notice that they claim to be an independent service, not connected to any funeral home. The founder, Rose Dawson, simply wants to connect you with a reliable firm. She has put together a team of specialists that are available 24/7. Sounds pretty good, right?

True, the service is free. AskBury makes its money through referral fees paid by the funeral homes, which tends to diminish the possibility of non-bias. And as for the claim that the company is NOT a funeral home, cemetery, or cremation society—well, actually it is.

It turns out AskBury is connected to Brewer & Sons Funeral Homes, a family-owned business since 1965 with seven locations in west-central Florida, including two in Tampa.

AskBury lists the same P.O. Box in Brooksville as Family Owned Service Co., the business name for Brewer & Sons. Its bereavement specialists work out of office space attached to Brewer & Sons’ funeral home on Broad Street. It gets even better. General Manager Rose Dawson? She’s really Jill Grabowski, Brewer & Sons’ marketing director. Barry Brewer, president of the funeral homes, liked the idea of having a resource for people who are new to the area or unfamiliar with planning a funeral. Admittedly, he enjoys a bit of humor, having grown up in the burial business with the name, Barry. He envisioned AskBury catching on nationwide.

To help AskBury get going, he offered use of his P.O. Box and office space. He suggested the name, a twist on Ask Gary, a local medical and accident lawyer referral service.

Oh, and of course, on the AskBury list of recommended funeral homes – Brewer & Sons

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