Rival Undertaker Steals Hearse

I’ve heard of rivals in sports. I have even heard of rivalries in business. But this is the first time I have heard of rival undertakers!

This story from the United Kingdom may be one of the most bizarre stories I have ever read. Let me just quote the first line of the story to give you an idea of how weird it is: “Mourners at a funeral were stunned when the keys to the hearse were stolen by a rival undertaker as the coffin was about to head to the cemetery.”

The incident occurred at Patricia Thorburn’s funeral at the Salvation Army citadel in Middlesborough. Undertaker David Wood, who believed undertaker Joel Kerr had been poaching customers from him, waited outside the funeral home until the time was right. When nobody was looking, he jumped in and stole the keys out of the waiting Rolls-Royce hearse. As a result of his actions, the family had to wait for another hour before they could follow the hearse to the cemetery as workers at the funeral had to hotwire the hearse. The family was offered a similar Cadillac hearse from a different company, but they insisted on using the Rolls-Royce hearse for the procession.

“The level of disrespect is unbelievable, dreadful,” said Irene Jessop, a funeral director that works with Kerr. Wood is due to stand trial after pleading guilty to theft.