Some people from the Northern Connecticut are on alert after learning the allegations of a funeral home owner diverting their prepaid funeral funds.
Philip Pietras was arrested for a flight in April, accused of having poorly managed more than $ 80,000 in prepaid accounts. Based on the Pietras case on the Connecticut judicial website, a plea has not yet been seized.
Earlier this week, Son’s resident soldier’s office with Connecticut’s state police shared a statement saying that they could be additional victims who might ignore.
NBC Connecticut spoke exclusively with Sheila Lawlor de Vernon, who says she believes that she is a victim.
“We are all elderly, and we have all lost this,” said Lawlor.
Lawlor says she paid $ 6,000 in cash at the Burke-Fortin funeral show in 2022, one of the five funeral salons in the Pietras family. The documentation provided to NBC Connecticut confirmed it.
When Lawlor learned the arrest of Pietras, she decided to see how her money was made in her confidence by the entire agent, Access Financial Group, Inc.
“The next day, I called confidence. They had nothing on me. Nothing anything,” said Lawlor.
She says they advised her to contact the police. Vernon police confirmed to NBC Connecticut that they had reported on April 22, 2025.
“The Vernon police service as well as several other police services have actively engaged in the management of the initial complaints of a certain number of” alleged victims “associated with several local funeral salons. I can share that Shelia Lawlor is one of the complaints. This is an active investigation which has been assigned to the detective police.
Lawlor says she feels that her money has disappeared.
“I still work because I have to get my money, for my funeral,” she said.
We spoke with a former employee of a Pietras funeral home, Haley Bohadik, who says that she separated from the company in 2024, when she says that she learned a potential fault.
“… my involvement in the pre-olds was to complete the contracts and have the payment. I gave Philip [Pietras] Pré-Ancange contracts and payments. I had no involvement in creating, filing or withdrawing trust accounts, “Bohadik said in a statement.
We also talked with Lisa Cortese, a friend from Lawlor who says she knew the Pietras family well. Although she has not lost money herself, she says that allegations drop her jaw. She says she trusted Pietras for the funeral of her relatives and recommended them to many.
“Death was the only thing we thought we had,” said Cortese. “You were taken care of by people who cared. And this is not the case in this situation. Our family personally has a broken heart. We certainly feel betrayed.”
According to the arrest warrant of April 6, Pietras told the detectives that he was without work for a while and that some “files were simply submitted and not completed”, and he “does not try to defraud to anyone or anything”.
Pietras’ lawyer John O’Brien, told us that he had not yet received all the investigation files in the case awaiting the Rockville Superior Court, so he is unable to comment.
Earlier this week, Pietras also suspended her embalming license during a Connecticut Department of Public Health audience.
“I have not seen the administrative documents of the State Department of Health about its professional license, but I expect to challenge this action in the coming week,” said O’Brien. “Once I have familiar with the allegations and specific evidence, I expect my client and I will resolve publicly.”
Pietras must return to court on June 3.
In an email obtained by NBC Connecticut, the city of Tolland tells people they can call and confirm that their prepaid cemetery plots were under the right property.
“If you believe that you may have been the victim of the scam or that you have concerns about the management of your funds, we strongly encourage you to submit a report to the C of the Connecticut State Troupe in Tolland,” said the email.
