A British funeral director is facing prison after police discovered 31 bodies that should have been cremated months earlier, with some families given other people’s ashes instead of their loved ones.

Robert Bush (48) who ran Legacy Independent Funeral Directors in Hull, previously pleaded guilty to 67 offences spanning 12 years and affecting hundreds of victims. His sentencing hearing began on Monday at Hull Crown Court.

Police searched Bush’s premises in March 2024 following a tip-off and found the bodies in a cold storage area. Among them was a stillborn baby that had been there for almost two years. Officers also discovered more than 100 sets of ashes.

“There were bodies stored on the racks on both sides of the room,” prosecutor Chris Paxton told the court. “The vast majority were uncovered and in varying states of decomposition.”

An ex-employee described the funeral parlour as “something from a horror scene”, Paxton said.

Jasmine Beverley, whose son Sunny was stillborn in May 2022, said Bush appeared “lovely” and presented himself as “very respectful”.

“It was a shock to learn what had actually been going on behind the closed doors,” she told BBC radio. She said Sunny’s remains were found in a brown envelope on the floor, despite believing he had been cremated.

“I discovered that he was still in there almost two years after we’d had the funeral,” she said, describing the discovery as “distressing”.

Beverley and her husband are among several families now campaigning for changes to funeral parlour regulation.

Bush was trusted by bereaved families but mistreated them on an “almost industrial scale”, Paxton said.

The five-day sentencing hearing will hear statements from over 100 victims.

Bush has admitted dozens of charges including preventing lawful and decent burial, theft and fraud. Four of the fraud charges involved falsely presenting ashes to women as the remains of their unborn children.

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