PRENTISS COUNTY, Miss. (WTVA) -- A grand jury indicted Wayne Hight of Booneville for failing to fund at least 85 percent of funds received for funeral services and merchandise.
More and more cases are arising such as this one, but the toll it takes on the victims and investigators is heavy.
"Our staff has worked hundreds of hours on this, they have taken, we have met with members of the public, we have interviewed over a thousand families, we have cemeteries surveyed, we've buried over 100 people in their cemeteries," said Mississippi Secretary of State, Delbert Hosemann.
The question now that Hight has been indicted and the case has progressed forward, is what to do if you find yourself a victim of such fraud.
"Individuals are welcome to call our office, Jeremy Martin here in the Tupelo office, we would be happy to work through with any information we have and add or subtract them from the list that seems appropriate," said Hosemann.
That number to call is (662) 844-0194.
Beyond just reporting the incident, Secretary Hosemann advises people to insure the legitimacy of these providers by checking records that are now open to the public through the Secretary of State's office.
"Everyone should insure if you have a pre-need policy, you should ensure to the viability of the individuals to perform the pre-need, we have financial reports on these individuals and companies now - we are willing to share those to the public to what the reports look like and those such things. I encourage the public to be aware of that," continued Hosemann.
Hosemann went on to say that most of the people that are in this business are legitimate, it's just a time now when one needs to be wary.
