Alleged Funeral Home Scammers Back In Court
DETROIT (WWJ) - An Eastpointe couple accused of taking up to $500,000 from as many as 200 people through a funeral scam will be back in front of a judge this week for a hearing.
Mark and Lisa Buehler, owners of Buehler Funeral Home in Roseville, are charged with four counts of funeral contract conversion.
Barbara and William Franchy say they lost about two grand in the scam for pre-arranged cremation and says they just wanted to make sure their family didn't have to deal with expenses.
"We have one son out-of-state, and like any people raising their families they are very busy. We just thought, this is what we want, so why not go ahead and make the arrangements," says Barbara Franchy.
"We were assured that if we died out-of-state and were cremated that money would be refunded for that person, if they sold the funeral home that money would be transferred to the new owner, if they went out of business again that money would be transferred to another facility, we didn't know, really, what else to ask, we thought it was very secure," adds Barbara.
The Buehlers are accused of taking money for prearranged funerals and spending it on a lavish lifestyle.
Prosecutors allege the Buehlers took funds for pre-paid funerals and used the money for personal purposes.
"We were both desiring a direct cremation which would not have involved a viewing and everything. So for the two of us it was just under $2,000 dollars. Which included the death certificates, and the permits from the county for the cremation," says William.
