Candace Scott: Former mortuary worker admits to trafficking 24 boxes of stolen cadaver parts across state lines
Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers’ discretion advised.
ARKANSAS: Candace Chapman Scott, a former mortuary worker in Arkansas, has pleaded guilty to trafficking stolen body parts, transporting them across state lines, and conspiring to commit mail fraud.
Scott, 37, entered her plea in response to charges brought forth by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Arkansas, initially filed in April 2023. These charges included six counts of wire fraud, four counts of mail fraud, and two counts of interstate transportation of stolen property.
Insights into Candace Chapman Scott's cadaver trafficking
Authorities uncovered Scott's involvement while she was employed at a mortuary service provider responsible for transporting, embalming, and cremating remains for the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).
The UAMS received donated cadavers through the Anatomical Gift Program, which Scott exploited for illicit gain, People reported.
According to details revealed in a plea agreement, she initiated contact with a Pennsylvania individual via a Facebook group discussing "oddities" on October 28, 2021.
Scott “introduced herself as a mortician at a trade service mortuary, explaining that the mortuary was contracted through UAMS in Little Rock to cremate medical cadavers," according to a plea agreement.
Candace Scott negotiated sale of stolen body parts
Candace Scott then asked the man “if he knew anyone interested in purchasing an embalmed human brain,” per the plea agreement. Subsequent negotiations led to the sale of stolen body parts, which Scott shipped across state lines from Arkansas to Pennsylvania via the US Postal Service.
Over nine months, Scott dispatched 24 boxes containing stolen cadaver parts, receiving $10,625 in payment. A pivotal moment in the investigation occurred when the FBI executed a search warrant at the suspect's residence in Little Rock on July 13, 2022.
Inside, they discovered numerous stolen body parts, including a human brain, heart, skullcap, kidneys, livers, hands, and a female pelvis with femurs, concealed in boxes and trash bags.
During questioning, Scott admitted to receiving payments for the body parts through PayPal. As of now, she awaits sentencing for her involvement in this disturbing case of illicit trafficking of human remains.
