Woman charged with stealing $10 ring off dead woman in funeral home

The glass ring was only worth $10. But it symbolized Lois Hicks’ ardent devotion to her husband who died three years ago.

So when Hicks died at age 88 last week, her family decided to bury the ring with her.

That was the plan anyway.

On Friday, as Hicks lay in an open casket at Sunset Funeral Home in Odessa, Texas, a woman stole the ring off her finger.

She ripped it off so forcefully that she tore the skin on Hicks’ finger.

The incident was caught by one of the funeral home’s surveillance cameras.

“It makes me sick to my stomach,” Vel McKee, Hicks’ daughter, told the Odessa American. “Horrible. I hope they catch her.”

And now police say they have.

Odessa police on Tuesday arrested 41-year-old Kalynn Homfeld on a charge of theft from a human corpse.

Online Ector County jail records didn’t yet list custody or attorney information for Homfeld.

“Right now, I’m getting called about every 15 minutes about this from national media,” Odessa police spokesman Steve LeSueuer said on Monday.

“I think mainly just because it’s so unique. It’s a $10 ring, but just because it’s very rare for this to happen.”

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/weird/article71344922.html/
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CCTV captures woman stealing ring from corpse in open casket

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01: 16 - Euro News

This is disgusting...
The sad thing is , the thief thought that she was stealing something of value. With no thought of what the ring meant to the person.

I hope they charge and convict her if she is guilty... as if she stole a ring worth several thousand dollars.

I am kind of surprised by the Odessa police department's reaction. There has been desecration of the dead & grave robbers through out time. In a way, even archeologists are desecraters.

But chances are this thief (in his mind) may just be 'just another juckie' & he is wondering why people are so shocked.

In any event.. I hope for the sake of the family of the deceased ,that the court throws the book at her & that the media keeps showing the footage.

Besides being charged with "theft from a human corpse" I hope they can charge her additionally for mutilating a corpse since she tore the woman's skin taking the ring off.

I hope the thief gets fed through the
Texas Department of Corrections... Slowly.

Ewwwe that thought of the ghost coming to hunt you down for stealing.

That would scare the living days out of me

Oh Lord Annie, I just about spit water everywhere laughing... I am willing to bet they didn't give it a thought

Damn GHOUL!

I doubt it, it sounds like a plain Petty Larceny to me. Unless you get a good Deputy District Attorney who can maybe nail the suspect with Burglary (which any good defense attorney could get dropped down or dismissed because the prosecution has to prove she entered with the intention of stealing an item) or mutilating a corpse since damage was done to the body.

I am in no means sticking up for this crook, but I have seen how the system works regarding theft related personal and business for over 18 years and it can be pretty sad sometimes.