Remains of over 60 babies and fetuses found hidden at Detroit Funeral Home

(Reuters) – The remains of more than 60 infants and fetuses were found hidden in a Detroit funeral home, police said Friday, calling the finding "deeply troubling".

The incident comes about a week after the decaying bodies of 11 babies were found hidden in a false ceiling at another funeral home in the city of Michigan.

No link has yet been established between the two cases, said the Detroit police chief. He added that municipal, provincial and federal investigators were considering forming a task force to investigate the inappropriate storage of human remains.

Non-refrigerated boxes containing about 36 sets of remains were found at Perry Funeral Home, along with 27 other sets in a freezer, police said.

"This is deeply troubling," Detective Chief of Police James Craig told reporters on Friday. "I have never seen anything like it for 41 years and a half (in the force), ever."

Investigators work to establish ages and identities.

A manager of Perry Funeral Home, who offers burial and cremation services, declined to comment on the incident.

Michigan's licensing and regulatory affairs department revoked the funeral home's license and closed the premises for what it said was "neglect and improper storage of the bodies," according to the local WXYZ television channel.

Police have also opened an investigation into the now-defunct Cantrell funeral home, where the remains of the eleven babies were found last week after the authorities received an anonymous letter to the remains.

Its former operators did not comment for the media.

In April, the Michigan government's control authorities discovered "deplorable and unhealthy conditions" in the same premises, including bodies embalmed in a non-refrigerated garage and other badly decomposed remains, said the licensing department. and Michigan regulatory affairs in a statement.

The funeral home has also been charged with several license violations and financial violations, the agency said.