Sacked pair deny burying Travellers on the cheap - Northumberland

From the Berwick Advertiser

A PAIR of sacked gravediggers have strenuously denied taking money from Gypsies and Travellers to bury their relatives without proper records being kept.

The claim was made by an unnamed source in a Sunday Express article but Northumberland County Council has revealed it has no evidence to corroborate the story.

Chris Gregory, who was dismissed along with colleague Malcolm Purvis by Northumberland County Council last year for gross misconduct following an investigation into administrative errors at Berwick and Tweedmouth cemeteries, is furious that the issue has been dredged up again.

“We don’t know anything about Gypsies being buried there,” he insisted. “I don’t know where the story came from but it’s got nothing to do with me. This whole thing has left my wife absolutely distraught.”

The pair have continued to protest their innocence while the council investigates the possibility of up to 30 bodies being buried in the wrong graves and other matters such as memorials on the wrong graves and deeds issued incorrectly. While most of the errors can be corrected by clarifying details in the burial records, partial excavation may be required in some cases.

A council spokesman said: “We’ve made good progress in contacting local people and are now carrying out a full audit of all plots across Berwick.

“This may be a lengthy process and we would ask people to bear with us as we complete the work, which we are determined will be comprehensive.”