Texas Embalmer Allegedly Mutilated The Corpse Of A Registered Sex Offender
A Texas woman named Amber Paige Laudermilk has been charged with abusing a corpse. Authorities claim she used a scalpel to castrate the body of registered sex offender, Charles Roy Rodriguez, in February.
The 34-year-old woman was employed as an embalmer at Memorial Mortuary & Crematory in Houston when she allegedly mutilated Rodriguez’s body, according to a statement from Harris County Precinct One Constable Alan Rosen shared on Monday (March 10) via NBC News.
Rodriguez was charged with sexual assault in 2001 and died of natural causes at a Houston hospital back in January.
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According to documents from local authorities, two Memorial Mortuary & Crematory employees witnessed the incident. One witness reportedly saw Laudermilk stab Rodriguez twice in the groin while in the cremation room before slicing off his penis and placing it in his mouth.
Laudermilk allegedly told the first witness — who’s an embalming student — “You didn’t see anything,” in a way that the witness deemed “as threatening.”
The other witness showed up not long after and noticed that Rodriguez’s groin was “disfigured.” When asking Laudermilk what happened, she reportedly replied that Rodriguez had “a lot going on with him.” A complaint was filed with local authorities on Feb. 19.
“This case is about two troubled people: the victim who was a registered sex offender and the defendant, who is accused of viciously attacking his dead body,” Rosen explained. “No matter what one thinks of his life, the law requires that he be treated with dignity in death.”
A Harris County Precinct One spokesperson told NBC News that Laudermilk turned herself in on Tuesday (March 11) and is currently in custody at the Harris County Jail. She’s required to pay a $5,000 bond before being released.
