David Fuller Case: Morgue Abuse Could Happen Again, Inquiry Warns

David Fuller Case

Systemic failures in post-mortem care leave the deceased vulnerable nationwide, inquiry finds.

An independent inquiry has concluded that the horrific crimes committed by hospital worker David Fuller who sexually abused the corpses of at least 101 women and girls could happen again due to widespread failures in the regulation and oversight of mortuary practices across England.

Fuller, now serving a whole-life sentence for the 1987 murders of Wendy Knell and Caroline Pierce in Kent, exploited “serious failings” at Kent and Sussex Hospital and Tunbridge Wells Hospital, where he worked as a maintenance electrician. Between his arrest in 2020 and the inquiry’s findings, disturbing revelations have emerged about the broader vulnerability of mortuary systems nationwide.

Systemic Gaps and National Risks

The second phase of the inquiry, led by Sir Jonathan Michael, paints a grim picture: existing safeguards for the treatment of deceased individuals are “partial, ineffective, and in significant areas, completely lacking.” The inquiry examined not only NHS hospital mortuaries but also non-hospital facilities, including the roughly 4,500 funeral directors operating in England.

Sir Jonathan warned that the conditions which enabled Fuller to offend for over 15 years including entering a mortuary 444 times in a single year without detection — could still exist elsewhere. He stressed:

“I have concluded that yes, it is entirely possible that such offences could be repeated particularly in those sectors that lack any form of statutory regulation.”

Inadequate Oversight and Governance

Failures in management and governance were central to the inquiry’s findings. Mortuary staff routinely left bodies unrefrigerated overnight and lacked accountability systems that could detect or deter abuse. Despite his non-clinical role, Fuller had unrestricted access to mortuary spaces, exploiting the void in oversight to carry out unspeakable acts over many years.

The inquiry sharply criticized the hospitals where Fuller worked, but also emphasized that these issues are not isolated:

“We found examples of similar weaknesses across the country.”

Call for Statutory Regulation

Sir Jonathan is now calling for statutory regulation to ensure the security and dignity of deceased individuals a legal framework that does not currently exist in many parts of the sector.

As public trust in these systems hangs in the balance, the call for reform is clear: the dead must be protected with the same dignity and vigilance we demand for the living.

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