(NECN: Mike Cronin) - The body of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev has now been at a Worcester funeral home for more than five days. Who should foot the bill for the tens-of-thousands of dollars it's costing the city to provide 24-hour security outside the home?
“So, I am publically appealing to those with authority to provide a burial site. Do so and do so quickly,” said Worcester Police Chief Gary Gemme.
Gemme wants the body of first bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev out of the city. It remains at the Graham Putnam and Mahoney funeral home.
“We are not barbarians. We bury the dead.” Chief Gemme said.
The bombing suspects' uncle was seen again at the funeral home, leaving with another man Wednesday afternoon. There's been some local discussion of shipping the body to Russia.
“This is not an option with the uncle who has taken responsibility for the body out of compassion and a respect for his faith,” Gemme said.
So far, no one has agreed to bury the body. Gemme says on Monday there was a proposal to bury the remains at a department of corrections facility but that the plan fell apart the following day.
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“A number of attempts to contact state officials on Tuesday for explanation went unanswered and no telephone calls were returned,” said Gemme.
Costs continue to pile up for the police department. They say it's costing tens of thousands of dollars for detail work and is wasting resources. It's a concern shared by Gemme and City Manager Mike O'Brien.
“Our first priority is always public safety and to that end, we've done our job and continue to do our job. We'll have to address these costs and we hope there's partners out there that are going to help us take care of those,” O’Brien said.
Meanwhile, Gemme acknowledges burial sites will receive negative publicity if they accept the body - but pleads there needs to be a solution.
“Unfortunately we are still without a burial site and there is no immediate prospects.”
