A Texas woman faces serious charges after allegedly mutilating the body of a registered sex offender using a scalpel, officials confirmed.
Amber Paige Laudermilk, 34, who worked as an embalmer at Memorial Mortuary & Crematory in Houston, is accused of castrating the body of Charles Roy Rodriguez, 58, in February, NBC News. This was revealed in a statement on Monday by Constable Alan Rosen of Harris County Precinct One.
Rodriguez, a registered sex offender charged with sexual assault in 2001, died of natural causes at a Houston hospital in January, the statement added.
According to charging documents, two Memorial Mortuary & Crematory employees witnessed the disturbing act. The first witness, an embalming student, reportedly saw Laudermilk stab Rodriguez twice in the groin inside the cremation room, then cut off his genitals and place them in his mouth.
The student claimed Laudermilk warned them by saying, “You didn’t see anything,” in a way that felt threatening, as noted in the documents.
Shortly afterward, a second witness arrived and noticed Rodriguez’s disfigured groin area. When questioned about it, Laudermilk allegedly replied that the deceased “had a lot going on with him,” according to the charging papers.
The incident came to light after the Funeral Director in Charge at Claire Brothers Funeral Home in Houston filed a police complaint on February 19.
“This case involves two troubled individuals — the victim, a registered sex offender, and the defendant, accused of a brutal attack on his corpse,” Rosen commented. “Regardless of the victim’s past, the law demands dignity in death.”
A spokesperson for Harris County Precinct One informed NBC News that Laudermilk was not in custody as of Tuesday but planned to surrender to authorities.
Claire Brothers Funeral Home and Amber Laudermilk did not respond to NBC News’ request for comments.
