Mortuary tipster details battle
By Hugh Clark
Advertiser Big Island Bureau
HILO, Hawai'i — Speaking for the first time in months about the investigation that led to a 39-count theft indictment against the owners of a Hilo mortuary, Lucille Mossman said she had been scorned after bringing the allegations to light last year.
Deputy Attorney General Ricky Roy Damerville called Lucille Mossman "my hero" after obtaining a grand jury indictment Wednesday against Robert Diego, his wife, Momi, and their daughter, Bobbie Jean, and their companies, Diego Mortuary Inc. and Memorial Mortuary Plan Inc., for allegedly selling funeral plans without a license over a 13-year period and not maintaining a trust account to protect customers' money.
The Diegos and their attorney declined to comment, but earlier denied Mossman's allegations of wrongdoing. Attorney Brenda Carreira has characterized the state's investigation as a witch hunt initiated by a bitter Mossman when her romance with Robert Diego went sour.
Diego and Mossman have acknowledged an affair five years ago that resulted in a child. Mossman said yesterday she had been motivated not by the failed relationship but rather a desire to see justice done on behalf of Big Island residents.
She said she spent more than a year pressing state regulators to take action in the case.
When she went public by picketing the mortuary in June 2001, "this place vilified her," said Damerville, a former Big Island prosecutor newly assigned to the case two months ago.
Mossman, 37, said she had been called names and had to change her telephone number and residence to avoid unwanted attention.
Meanwhile, the Diegos' attorney sought civil sanctions against her in District Court for alleged harassment. The request was denied.
Mossman's own attempt to obtain a temporary restraining order against the Diegos also was rejected.
Del Pranke of Puna, a regular government critic who picketed alongside Mossman, asked why it had taken so long to get officials to move against the Diegos, especially since licensing information is readily available on the Internet.
Mossman also told authorities Robert Diego had performed embalmings without a license and that corpses were buried in body bags instead of purchased caskets — claims the mortuary owners have denied.
They earlier said they had contracted with a licensed embalmer, and any mishandling of burials was the responsibility of the cemetery.
After Mossman came forward in the summer of 2001, investigators surveyed several grave sites to check for caskets and seized records from the mortuary. The three Diegos were arrested in March and held overnight.
Damerville would not say whether the mortuary owners face additional charges related to burials. Carreira said she had arranged for her clients to surrender to authorities once the indictment is served.
The Diegos also face civil complaints filed earlier this month by the state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs seeking fines of $10,000 for each violation.
