GRIM

L.A. County Coroner Investigator Charged With Stealing From the Dead

In one incident, he was allegedly caught on camera taking a gold necklace from a body.

An investigator with the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner has been charged with stealing valuable items from dead people, prosecutors said Wednesday. Adrian Muñoz, 34, faces a felony count of grand theft and a misdemeanor count of petty theft. According to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office, Muñoz stole a gold crucifix necklace off the body of a warehouse worker who suffered a fatal heart attack on the job in January. An employee of the company where the incident took place told the Los Angeles Times that Muñoz was caught on security camera footage taking the necklace along with cash from the front pocket of the man’s pants. After the deceased man’s family reported the theft, authorities also allegedly found antique coins in Muñoz’s desk that had belonged to a man whose death Muñoz investigated last November. Kristopher Gay, the deputy district attorney handling the case, said he “can’t say” how many more potential victims there could be.