Texas mortuary worker stabs a relative of a deceased person who shared a viral video exposing what the funeral home conditions were like: ‘She had gnats on her face’

​A disturbing incident occurred at Richardson Mortuary in Houston, Texas, recently, where a funeral home worker allegedly stabbed a customer who had shared video online of the premises. 

The altercation arose when Tamara McGruder-Crooks and her brother visited the mortuary to check on their deceased mother and found her body in unsanitary conditions, including being infested with gnats and exposed to heat due to a lack of air conditioning. McGruder-Crooks and her brother took a video of what they saw, which went viral online.

When McGruder-Crooks and her brother returned, a funeral home employee, who has not been identified in the press, reportedly stabbed McGruder-Crooks’ brother, claiming self-defense. 

“She had gnats on her face,” McGruder-Crooks later said, describing her mother’s body when she saw it. She added, “I said, ‘I’m not gonna leave without my mom’s body. And he said, ‘You’re gonna leave,’” and then the confrontation happened.

The injury was minor, and no charges have been filed against the employee.

Others in Houston recognized their loved ones in the McGruder-Crooks footage

The video that the McGruder-Crooks and her brother captured revealed ten decaying bodies stored improperly, some wrapped in plastic or left uncovered. When the video went viral online, other families recognized their loved ones among the remains, whom they believed had already been cremated. 

According to Houston’s KHOU, Houston police department captain Jim Dale said, “There were bodies laid out on, on the ground and on, cardboard.”

“They’re on stretchers. They have gnats. They’re in boxes. It smells horrible. They’re inside of caskets. They’re uncovered. They’re naked,” McGruder-Crooks told the press.

She added, “I feel hurt because they have not one, but they have two of our family members: My mother and my uncle.”

The Texas Funeral Service Commission has initiated an investigation into potential violations, including corpse abuse, insect infestations, and improper storage. 

The bodies have since been transferred to facilities with adequate refrigeration. The funeral home owner could face criminal charges pending the investigation. ​

According to Fox26Houston, Houston resident Demtrious Riley-Sylvester’s brother recently died, and Richardson told him his body had been cremated, but she learned that wasn’t the case through McGruder-Crooks and her brother’s video.

“It’s like some trash or a dog. Just throw him away like he’s trash and she had me believing. We were just waiting on them to bring the ashes,” Riley-Sylvester said.

As of now, Richardson Mortuary has not issued a public statement regarding the incident.​ Several reports say the owner of Richardson Mortuary was hospitalized for an unrelated health problem when the attack happened.

McGruder-Crooks told Fox26Houston, “It’s not dignifying. It’s very embarrassing. It’s hurtful when you’re already grieving to find out your mom is not being taken care of. You have other people who do not even know their family is here laying on the table and these people are charging an arm and a leg, and the bodies are just laying there.”