Dental News - Snatcher of dental gold from dead stands trial

Daniel Zimmermann, DTI

Thu. 1 March 2012

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LONGMONT, Colo., USA: Unlike in the 19th century, body snatching has become a rare phenomenon. Now a man working in several Colorado mortuaries is facing felony charges for stealing bits of gold worth thousands of dollars from the recently deceased and selling to pawnbrokers, news sources in the U.S. have reported.

According to police officials, the 43-year-old suspect turned himself in after investigators searched his house and found a bag containing teeth believed to be taken from corpses. They also said that the father of eight allegedly sold teeth containing bits of the precious metal at least 17 times at various pawnbrokers in the area from May until November last year.

In total, he is believed to have gained more than $4,000 from his gruesome sales.

The man has denied the charges, saying that he only took teeth that were to be thrown away by the mortuaries at which he worked. Meanwhile, a jury has indicted him for providing false information — he provided a false address to the pawnbrokers.

Earlier this month, another man was charged with stealing dental gold worth $15,000 from the Washington dental lab where he worked.

The price of gold and other precious metals has exploded in recent years. Currently, traders pay more than $1,700 for an ounce of gold.

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