MUNHALL, Pa. — After 11 Investigates broke the story that a local funeral director already facing charges for mishandling pets is also under investigation for abusing human remains, families have been flooding our team with questions about their loved ones. That includes a family who pulled out their records and found some troubling discrepancies.
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Laura Smaglo says her mother, Margaret Smaglo, always had a smile on her face even as she fought an aggressive form of breast cancer in her 90s. Through her treatments, her beloved cat, Barnaby, was by her side.
“Barnaby was her little nurse during her cancer treatments,” Smaglo said. “The two would sit and watch TV together.”
When Barnaby passed away, Margaret wanted Patrick Vereb to handle his remains and make a memorial frame.
“‘What a beautiful job they did,’” Smaglo recalled her mother saying. “‘The little paw print and the picture. When I die, that’s who I want to take care of me.’”
In July of 2024, at the age of 99, Margaret Smaglo passed away peacefully. Her daughter remembered what her mom told her.
“‘If he took such good care of Barnaby, he’ll take good care of me too,’” Smaglo heard her mother’s voice telling her. “Little did we know.”
Less than a year later, Vereb was charged by the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office for mishandling the remains of 6,500 animals over the course of several years. Investigators say instead of cremating pets, he dumped them in a landfill and pocketed the money families paid for services.
“It was that sinking feeling in my gut,” Smaglo tells 11 Investigates. “It was almost like being punched. It was disbelief - like, no, this can’t be, oh my goodness. Of course, I had a fleeting thought about Barnaby, but the worst thing was my mom. My first thought is, is that my mom in that urn? Is there somebody else in that urn with her? Or a pet in there with her, or do I have all of her ashes?”
As she opened the folder with paperwork from Vereb, all of the sadness of losing her mom came flooding back.
“It brought her death back again,” Smaglo said. “It was very upsetting to think she might have been mishandled like the animals were.”
Her records show five days went by between the time Margaret Smaglo’s body was brought to Vereb’s funeral home and her cremation. Under state law, a body must be embalmed or refrigerated within 24 hours of death. But, 11 Investigates learned Vereb’s funeral home had no refrigeration.
“Where was she for the five days?” Smaglo now wonders.“She passed on the 11th and wasn’t cremated until the 16th. Where were her remains during that time? Were they mishandled?”
In April, Laura Smaglo called the PA Attorney General’s Office.
“I told him my concerns with my mother’s cremation,” Smaglo tells 11 Investigates. “He said we’re not investigating that right now, but you could write us a letter. I made copies of everything to send to them with my letter and concerns and didn’t hear anything back.”
It’s now been five months and 11 Investigates has heard from other families who have also contacted the Attorney General’s Office with their concerns.
“I think they pushed it aside,” Smaglo says. “If I was the only one who wrote to them, maybe. Maybe they didn’t think it was worth investigating at this point.”
We asked Smaglo what her mother would think if she knew she was fighting for answers for her.
“She knew that I was a fighter for things,” Smaglo said. “‘Go ahead, fight. Fight to make it right,’ is what she would say.”
Laura says she might not ever know if her mom’s ashes are hers or all of hers, but she will make sure her mom’s story is heard.
“I think what it boils down to is my faith has kept me going. I know where my mom is, and I know I’ll see her again one day. And I think Barnaby is with her.”
11 Investigates reached out to the PA Attorney General’s Office. They did not immediately reply to our request for a comment.
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