A funeral director in the UK has been accused of something so shocking it sounds like a scene from a horror film, but she insists she’s done nothing wrong.
Zoe Ward was left devastated when her son Bleu tragically died at just three weeks old. In the depths of her grief, she turned to an organisation called Florrie’s Army, which was set up to help bereaved parents arrange funerals for their babies. The service was run by 38-year-old Amie Upton, who Zoe trusted to care for her child during such a painful time.
But when Zoe went to Upton’s home, she says she was confronted with something that left her traumatised. To her disbelief, she claims she found Bleu’s body placed on the sofa next to another deceased infant while children’s cartoon PJ Masks played on the TV.
Speaking to the BBC about the moment, Zoe recalled: “I realised it was Bleu and [Upton] says: ‘Come in, we’re watching PJ Masks.’ There’s a cat scratcher in the corner, I can hear a dog barking, and there was another [dead] baby on the sofa. It wasn’t a nice sight. I rang my mum and I was screaming down the phone: ‘It’s mucky, it’s dirty, he can’t stay here.’”
After Zoe reported what she’d seen, Upton was banned from accessing NHS maternity wards and mortuaries in Leeds. Despite this, she has continued to defend her actions and insists she provided nothing but love and dignity to the babies in her care.
In response to the outrage, Upton claimed: “They were always clean and tidy and were not deteriorating or smelly as claimed. We had refrigerating units and cold cots. The babies here were not put in a fridge when staff go home, but I was here all the time. Their babies knew nothing but love. You don’t find nurses reading their babies a story. I would. I know I only ever did my best. It is ridiculous.”
However, many parents remain horrified that their children’s bodies may have been kept in such conditions. And due to what’s been described as a “legal loophole,” Upton has so far avoided facing criminal charges over her work with Florrie’s Army, The Guardian reported.
This is due to the fact that there are no regulations governing funeral homes in England and Wales; this includes how the deceased should be handled or stored. Both the National Association of Funeral Directors and the National Society of Allied and Independent Funeral Directors have a joint code of conduct, which does have guidelines for inspections, but membership is not compulsory.
West Yorkshire Police confirmed that two separate incidents involving the funeral service were reported in 2021, but detectives ultimately found “no potential crimes” to investigate, the Daily Mail reports.
In a statement, the force said: “We recognise the concerns raised by these two families will have added to the distress they felt during an already incredibly difficult time. Our thoughts remain with them.”
Despite Upton insisting she’s only received two complaints in eight years, other couples have since spoken out, comparing their experiences with her to something “straight out of a horror film.”