A longtime administrator of a city-run cemetery in Melrose, Massachusetts, is accused of selling burial plots he didn't own.
John Hughes, 70, of Revere, who ran Wyoming Cemetery since 2011, was in court Tuesday morning, to face several larceny charges.
"I mean, what else is there?" Bob De'Anglis wondered Tuesday evening as he visited his parents' grave site at Wyoming. "What a shame, too bad."
According to prosecutors, Hughes allegedly told people looking to buy a plot at Wyoming that he knew someone who had purchased a grave previously and wanted to sell.
Court papers state Hughes then used a longtime friend, female acquaintance, and a family member as "straw sellers." Prosecutors allege Hughes made over $70,000 this way.
"I hope they get all that money back and reimburse the poor people who don't have plots now," De'Anglis said.
In a statement, Melrose Mayor Robert J. Dolan said he was, "shocked and saddened."
U.S. & World
"We have personally reached out to the families who were impacted by these alleged crimes," Dolan wrote. "This is a very difficult time for these affected families and for all of us."
Hughes plead not guilty to the charges and will be back in court in January.
"There doesn't seem like, nothing is sacred anymore in this world, it doesn't seem like," De'Anglis said, nodding his head.
