Two roommates of a recently deceased man were each charged with abusing a corpse after propping him up to withdraw money from a bank, police said.
Ashtabula Police Chief Robert B. Stell said in a statement that Lorene B. Ferraro, 55, and Karen Kazbohm, 63, discovered the man's body on Monday, and that the body had previously been with him. announced that he had taken it to the bank.
The roommates, with the help of an anonymous third person, carried the body to the front seat of the deceased's car in view of the bank staff and drove to a familiar bank branch, where they withdrew an undisclosed amount of money. said the director.
Stell said the two had previously withdrawn money from the man's account with his presence and approval. The police chief told the Star-Beacon, a daily Ashtabula news platform, that the suspects used the bank's drive-through counter.
Stell said in a statement that the assault unraveled after the two men dropped off the body at Ashtabula County Medical Center after being discharged from the hospital and quickly left without giving hospital staff any information about the man.
The director said one of the two people later called the facility with the man's story, and the body was identified as Douglas Layman, 80.
Stell said officers went to the believer's Ashtabula home, where his roommate told him about the bank trip.
Police said the suspects appeared in court, but it was unclear whether they entered pleas or were assigned lawyers. The county public defender's office did not respond to a request for comment.
NBC affiliate WKYC in Cleveland, about 90 miles southwest of Ashtabula, reported that Kasbohm's bail was set at $5,000 and that Ferraro was ordered to appear in court for arraignment next week.
Stell said in a statement that additional charges are possible. The county attorney's office did not respond to a request for comment.
