You expect to find dead bodies in a funeral home — but not more than 50 of them, unrefrigerated and producing a stench that wafted into the neighborhood and prompted investigators to pay a visit.
Authorities are still investigating the South Chicago Chapel where a total of 56 bodies were discovered this week in various states of decomposition, according to investigators.
That revelation came months after nearby residents complained about a "stench" coming from the funeral parlor, Fox News Digital and other outlets reported.
State and local officials alerted the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office (MEO), which sent investigators and forensic pathologists to the site to get a look inside.
There they made the grim discovery.
"Multiple decedents" were stored in an unrefrigerated area under “deplorable conditions,” investigators alleged.
“Staff is assessing the conditions of the remains, searching for documentation regarding identification of the decedents as well as death certificates,” the MEO said in a statement. “This process could take several days to ensure proper disposition.”
Meanwhile, state officials suspended the license of funeral home director Johanna Morgan on Wednesday. State business records show Morgan incorporated South Chicago Chapel Inc. in 2022, multiple news outlets reported.
According to Chicago's ABC affiliate:
The state Department of Financial and Professional Regulation said the license suspension was due to "a finding that Respondent's continued practice is a danger to the public safety, interest, and welfare due to Respondent allowing multiple decedents to be kept in an unrefrigerated area with deplorable conditions including rodent infestation, causing decomposition and maggot infestation of the bodies."
No arrests have been made or criminal charges filed. However, the Chicago Police Department has assigned the case to detectives to investigate.
As for the bodies and their loved ones, the Medical Examiner's Office has "taken jurisdiction of the decedents at that location," the MEO said in a statement Friday.
The office also urged family members to contact the MEO to "ensure death certificates and other appropriate paperwork" was filed.
In return, the office said in Friday's statement:
The MEO will contact family members to make final arrangements after their loved one has been positively identified. The MEO will handle the cremation of decedents at no cost for all families who choose that option. Families will also have the opportunity to work with a funeral home of their choice to make final arrangements.
"The funeral home is operated by a couple who previously ran a crematory that authorities said was also shut down over the mishandling of remains," Fox reported.
Business records cited by Fox identify Clark Morgan, reportedly Johanna Morgan’s husband, as South Chapel's president.
The husband also had a director's license, but it was revoked in 2024 for "practicing with an expired license" and “unprofessional conduct,” according to news reports.
Breitbart contributor Lowell Cauffiel is the author of the New York Times true crime best seller House of Secrets and nine other crime novels and nonfiction titles. See lowellcauffiel.com for more.
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