R.G. Ortiz Funeral Homes Inc. to pay over $600K in restitution to exploited families
R.G. Ortiz operates locations in the Bronx, Brooklyn and Manhattan.
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Families who say their loved ones remained were mishandled by Bronx funeral home could be part of settlement.
Families in the Bronx say they are finally getting some form of justice against R.G. Ortiz Funeral Homes after they say their loved ones’ remains were mishandled.
The families could be eligible for part of a settlement worth more than $600,000.
Team 12 Investigates covered this story extensively through Death Without Dignity in 2021 and other stories since.
Images sent to News 12 show disturbing differences between loved ones before and after their families say the bodies were turned over to Ortiz for services.
In April, the Department of Consumer Worker Protections (DCWP) filed a lawsuit against R.G. Ortiz for “egregious violations of the city’s Consumer Protection Law, including refusing to provide information regarding the whereabouts of consumers’ loved ones’ remains, misrepresenting or concealing the prices of services offered, failing to provide services that consumers paid for–in part because they routinely presented remains in unacceptable conditions–among others” according to a release from DCWP.
The department says since 2018, a total of 74 consumers submitted complaints detailing R.G. Ortiz’s alleged predatory and deceptive practices targeting grieving families.
The DCWP encourages anyone who thinks they were deceived, harmed or exploited by R.G. Ortiz Funeral Homes to visit DCWP - File a Claim for R.G. Ortiz Restitution or call 311 and say “R.G. Ortiz” to file a complaint.
