JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A former Jacksonville funeral home director pleaded not guilty to nine counts of funeral fraud and one charge of organized fraud.
A warrant for Elliott Maurice Graham issued in early March listed the 10 new felony charges against the former funeral home director accused of abandoning a mortuary with bodies inside, misusing funeral funds, and giving people the wrong ashes.
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The News4JAX I-TEAM obtained the warrant which states between April 7, 2020, and August 1, 2022, Graham “acting in his trusted capacity as a Florida-licensed Funeral Director, orchestrated, enticed, and benefited from multiple years of systematic ongoing course of conduct with intent to defraud consumers who purchased preneed funeral arrangements by misappropriating funds and unlawfully withdrawing funds for preneed contracts in a cumulative amount of $90,897.66...”
According to Graham’s original arrest warrant, state investigators entered the Marion Graham Funeral Home in Jacksonville on Jan. 30, after spending weeks trying to get in touch with him for an inspection. Inside, they said they found three decomposing bodies infested with bugs. He is also accused of false insurance claims, stealing tens of thousands of dollars from customers, and stealing up to $750 from a foundation that helps grieving families pay for a child’s funeral costs.
His case prompted an urgent push to change state law. Awaiting the Florida Governor’s signature is legislation that would give investigators the ability to enter and secure funeral facilities in an emergency -- like when it’s been abandoned.
“So, the legislature saw this and now that gives us the ability when we do get a complaint and there’s a funeral home for some reason or another that is unoccupied or doesn’t have power, we can go in and act upon it immediately,” Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said. “And we’ve increased the penalties that if these bad actors are operating in a way that is not in the best interest of Floridians, then we’ve got more teeth to put them behind bars.”
Patronis, whose agency oversees funeral homes and mortuaries, also confirms that Graham’s license to operate as a funeral home director and the license for Marion Graham Funeral Home have been permanently revoked by Florida’s Board of Funeral, Cemetery, and Consumer Services.
Graham remains in Duval County jail on a $256,000 bond.