A lawsuit filed on Tuesday alleges that a New York funeral home, Rivera Funeral Home, sent the wrong body for burial in Guatemala last year. The family of Elder Emilio Garcia Umul claims that the funeral home sent the body of a 96-year-old woman instead of that of Garcia Umul. The error was discovered by the family while watching a livestream of the funeral service in Guatemala in May. This is the second time Rivera Funeral Home has been sued for alleged mistaken deliveries. The first lawsuit was filed by the family of Carmen Maldonado, whose body was mistakenly sent to Guatemala as well. The funeral home denied the allegations in the first suit and that lawsuit is ongoing.
The lawsuit filed in October alleges that Garcia Umul’s body was not properly prepared for transport and was carelessly left in New York. The family was devastated upon learning through the funeral livestream that his body had been left behind. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for negligence, infliction of emotional distress, breach of contract, and loss of sepulcher. The right of sepulcher is a right in New York law for loved ones to have their relatives’ remains preserved and buried. There were no details available on whether the funeral home had an attorney for this case. The family of Garcia Umul is seeking justice and compensation for this egregious mistake made by the funeral home.
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