Complaint: 13 bodies, 17 boxes of cremated remains found at funeral home operating without a license
State health officials inspected the Camelot Funeral Home last Friday and then alerted law enforcement.
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The Attorney General's Office released a complaint that includes disturbing details about a funeral home in Mount Vernon that was operating without a license.
Many people in Mount Vernon say they are in disbelief.
"I'm just shocked," one longtime resident says.
Their reaction comes just hours after the Attorney General's Office released a complaint on Thursday.
It accuses funeral director Michael Naughton of operating Camelot Funeral Home without a license.
The complaint says an inspection was done by the state's health department.
Investigators say they found 17 boxes of cremated remains in the basement of the Stevens Avenue facility.
Thirteen bodies were found in various states of decomposition throughout the home.
Three of those bodies were found in the garage.
The development shocks Atif Coleman. He grew up and spent many years in Mount Vernon.
"You know, Camelot was once a trusted, long-standing institution in this community and to hear that bodies were stored in a garage, I mean, it's just appalling, it's shocking, it's embarrassing," Coleman says.
According to the complaint, The 55-year-old funeral director from Baldwin admitted that his license was revoked in 2019.
It says he was also aware that the home's license to operate had been suspended since May 2025.
The document says more than 20 funerals occurred at the facility since August.
None of the bodies found at the location had death certificates, either.
City court officials say Naughton pleaded not guilty to one count of operating as a funeral director without a license.
He's expected back in court in two weeks.
Naughton tells News 12 that he was shocked by his arrest and is trying to assist the families that he was serving.
He's waiting to share more as he seeks legal counsel.
In the meantime, Coleman is calling on city officials to establish a task force to help families as the investigation continues.
"You got family members that have lost thousands of dollars to this thinking that everything was going to work out, but it didn't," Coleman says.
City officials say the mayor doesn't have a comment at this time.
However, they're encouraging impacted individuals to connect with the attorney general's office at this address. camelot.complaint@ag.ny.gov
