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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Metro Manila devider Funeral home in Manila closed after hidden corpses discovered

Funeral home in Manila closed after hidden corpses discovered

Published Jul 31, 2025 05:44 pm  |  Updated Aug 1, 2025 04:26 pm
File Photo
File Photo
The Manila City government has shut down a funeral home in Sta. Cruz, after the discovery of several corpses stacked in a concealed morgue within a residential property.
The closure followed an inspection conducted by city sanitation officials, social welfare personnel, police officers, and representatives from Manila North Cemetery in response to a citizen's complaint.
The funeral home, located in Barangay 374, was found to be operating without the required business and sanitation permits.
The establishment appeared to function from a residential house.
During the inspection, the owner initially claimed there were no bodies on the premises and described the facility as providing only office-based and service-only functions.
However, further inspection revealed a hidden door that led to a small, enclosed space where ten cadavers were discovered.
Each body was wrapped in white plastic, and the area had a strong foul odor, according to the authorities. 
The space lacked proper refrigeration or morgue-grade equipment, and several of the bodies were already in various stages of decomposition.
All ten cadavers have since been transferred to a licensed funeral home for proper handling and storage.
Officials confirmed that one of the bodies had been held for more than three months after the family was unable to pay a funeral fee amounting to P100,000.
Despite partial payments being made, the body had not been released.
Barangay authorities stated they were unaware of the ongoing operation, though previous complaints had been made involving high service charges from the same location.
The Manila City government announced that it would assume all funeral and burial expenses for the affected families.
Families of the deceased have been instructed to coordinate with the administration of Manila North Cemetery for further assistance.
Meanwhile, two children who had been residing at the facility with the owner have been placed under the care of the Manila social welfare department.
The investigation is ongoing, the authorities said.

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