Remains found in abandoned Cobb County funeral home identified
M.E. hopes families come forward to claim cremains
The Cobb County Medical Examiner wants to find family members of dozens of people who died and were cremated at a local funeral home, one that closed after a fire almost a year ago.
COBB COUNTY, Ga. - Cobb County officials have identified nearly 60 sets of cremains discovered inside an abandoned funeral home last year.
Officials say they hope to reunite the 57 sets of cremains with their family members as soon as they can.
MORE: Unclaimed cremated remains highlight gaps in Georgia funeral regulations
The backstory:
Dozens of boxes of cremains, death certificates, and personal information were discovered by investigators inside the building that housed the Norman Medford Peden funeral home in November.
The business has been closed since a fire damaged the building in the spring. The Georgia Secretary of State’s Office, which oversees the Georgia State Board of Funeral Service, confirmed that the company’s license lapsed in August.
Police were tipped off to what was inside this building by someone who saw photos on Reddit.
Photos lead to disturbing discovery
An England photographer's photos taken inside of an abandoned funeral home in Marietta led to a disturbing discovery --- dozens of cremains. Investigators are now trying to determine who they were.
They were taken by a man from England, Ben James, who explores abandoned buildings, takes pictures of what he finds, then posts them on his Instagram, @places_forgotten.
"I didn't know what I was going to find. I saw the prep room and the caskets, other stuff like credit card information, people's addresses, burial information, burial clothes, burial jewelry," James told FOX 5 last year.
What they're saying:
On Wednesday, the Cobb County Medical Examiner’s Office said they have been the process of identifying the remains since the discovery months earlier.
"We hope to provide answers to any family with lingering questions about a loved one’s passing," said Cobb County Medical Examiner Dr. Christopher Gulledge. "Our office has worked tirelessly to identify these cremains using various methods, and we are committed to reuniting them with their families."
Officials say the funeral home had a contract with the Georgia Department of Family and Children Services to provide indigent burial services.
What you can do:
The Medical Examiner has released a full list of the identified cremains on its website.
Officials are asking anyone who believes they may have a connection to the cremains to contact the Cobb County Medical Examiner’s Office.
The Source: Information for this story came from a release by the Cobb County Medical Examiner and previous FOX 5 reporting.