FRANKFORT, Ky. (Sept. 13, 2024) – Attorney General Russell Coleman announced today that action by the Attorney General’s Office of Consumer Protection resulted in the maximum civil penalty against Cloverport Funeral Home in Breckinridge County and Kentuckiana Funeral Services. The Breckinridge Circuit Court ordered them to pay $580,000 for 290 illegal cremations.
The Attorney General’s Office continues litigation against the owner of these facilities, Anthony Oxendine.
“No family should be taken advantage of during their time of grief. Our Office quickly launched an investigation to hold these organizations accountable for brazen disregard for the law,” said Attorney General Coleman. “Our Office of Consumer Protection is constantly on the lookout for scams and fraud that target Kentuckians. We encourage anyone who believes they’ve been the victim of a scam or some other illegal business practice to contact our Office.”
The unregistered crematory has been closed since January when General Coleman secured a temporary restraining order. On January 2, 2024, the Attorney General’s Office received information that led to an investigation revealing the facility had failed to register to operate a crematory and was providing cremation services without a license in violation of Kentucky law. The investigation also confirmed the presence of an unlicensed cremation chamber, known as a retort.
This matter was handled by the Attorney General’s Office of Consumer Protection by Deputy Executive Director of Consumer Protection Jonathan Farmer, Assistant Attorneys General Matthew Cocanougher and Christopher Hunt as well as Registrations Branch Manager Tiffany Durham.
The Office of Consumer Protection protects Kentucky’s citizens from unfair, false, misleading, deceptive or anticompetitive acts or practices in trade or commerce. The Office’s enforcement efforts protect not only Kentucky’s citizens but also ethical vendors of goods and services.
To report scams, contact the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-888-432-9257 or complete the complaint form online at ag.ky.gov/scams.