NEWSWEEK
An Arizona man is facing charges and was fired from his job after being accused of having sex with a 79-year-old woman’s corpse in the morgue of a Phoenix hospital last month, according to local authorities.
Following weeks of investigation, Randall Bird, 46, was arrested on November 28 and charged with five counts of crimes against a dead person, Phoenix Police Department (PPD) spokesperson Brian Bower told Newsweek in an email.
On October 24, PPD officers responded to a call about suspected misconduct involving a man at Banner University Medical Center in Phoenix, where investigators said Bird worked as a security guard for the hospital. One of his job duties included transporting dead bodies to the morgue’s freezer. However, security guards were not supposed to open the body bags, local stations KTVK and KPHO report, citing court documents.
Video surveillance showed the 79-year-old victim’s body arriving at the morgue on October 22, when Bird brought her to the morgue, according to court documents, which allege that two witnesses arrived at the morgue sometime after but found the doors locked from the inside.
The two witnesses said they saw Bird inside the freezer, where he was “sweating profusely” and “acting very nervous,” according to court documents. The witnesses told police that Bird had removed his duty belt, his zipper was open, and his uniform looked “messy.” The victim’s body bag was unzipped, and she was facing down, which is not how bodies were supposed to be placed in the freezer, court documents allege.
The witnesses said when they entered the morgue, Bird tried covering the victim’s body and told them that he had a medical episode, the court documents show. Bird told them that he fainted and grabbed the victim’s body as he fell, ripping open the bag. However, the witnesses later disputed this claim to police, saying the bag and zipper weren’t broken, according to the court documents. The pair then reported Bird to their supervisor who called the police.
Police questioned Bird on October 25, who said that he had a medical episode and couldn’t remember what happened. Investigators collected evidence from the victim and Bird, and his DNA was found on the victim, KTVK and KPHO report.
It was unclear at the time of publication whether Bird had an attorney who could speak on his behalf.
Banner Health spokesperson Becky Armendariz confirmed to Newsweek in an email that Bird was no longer an employee. In a statement, she said that Banner Health officials are “saddened and appalled by the alleged actions.”
“Recently, Banner team members identified and reported concerning behavior of an employee in the hospital morgue,” Armendariz said. “Banner initiated an internal investigation, filed a report with law enforcement and terminated the employee. Banner Health has and remains committed to high standards that require each of our team members to treat everyone, at every stage of life, with compassion, dignity, and respect. We are grateful for the work of the Phoenix Police Department in the investigation and handling of this matter, and we will continue to cooperate with law enforcement. Out of respect for the family, we will not further comment at this time.”
