Police Scotland said it had been investigating A Milne Independent Funeral Directors for several weeks
By Lucy Ashton
A search of a funeral parlour at the centre of an investigation into missing cremated remains and alleged financial misconduct has concluded for the moment.
Specialist officers have been carrying out searches at A Milne Independent Funeral Directors on Balornock Road, Glasgow, since May 3.
The company also has a funeral parlour in Dumbarton at the junction of High Street and Riverside Lane.
Police Scotland said it had been investigating the funeral directors for several weeks and would likely continue to do so for “some time”.
Inquiries to establish any criminality are ongoing with the investigation described as “complex”.
Detective inspector Gerry Shovlin, of the CID in West Dunbartonshire, said: “This is a very sensitive case and we recognise the upset and distress that families have experienced.
“Our investigation has been going on for several weeks now and will continue for some time, due to the level of inquiry that will need to be followed up.
One grieving family has told STV News how they entrusted their uncle’s body to A Milne Funeral Independent Funeral Directors but the firm failed to prepare it in line with his final wishes.
“He hadn’t been embalmed, he was discoloured, his lips and things weren’t how they should have been,” David Breslin’s niece Klair Sloss said.
Another family has told how they are still waiting for their loved one’s ashes three years after entrusting them to the funeral directors.
Dennis Smillie’s family organised a funeral for the dad with A Milne Funeral Directors in West Dunbartonshire after he died in 2021. The family said the firm offered to deliver the ashes.
Three years later, they are still waiting for that to happen, and the Dumbarton branch has now closed.
A Milne Funeral Directors has been approached for comment.
If you wish to contact police regarding this investigation, then you can call officers via 101 quoting incident number 1289 of May 2, 2024 or contact Police Scotland via the dedicated inquiry email address at Operationkoine@scotland.police.uk