Julia Mott: Texas woman's body stolen from funeral home

Julie Mott, a 25-year-old San Antonio woman, died in early August, but her body has yet to be located. Mott’s body was due to be cremated, but within hours of the wake, her corpse was stolen. Police are now reaching out to the public in hopes of finding the person or persons responsible for stealing Mott’s remains. A $20,000 reward has been put up by distraught family members and the funeral home.

This is just sick. I feel so bad for her family. Not only does her family have to deal with the grief caused by her death but now some despicable person has stolen her body. Why in the hell would somebody do that?
Link

The police are looking into somebody who was obsessed with her.

According to a police report obtained by The San Antonio Express-News, a 20-something man, who has not been identified, had been "obsessed" with calling and texting Mott. He was also reportedly the last person seen leaving the funeral home after her service. Authorities have not released any additional details on the potential suspect.

Link 2

That somehow makes it even worse. I don't know if the guy who was obsessed with her took the body or not but if so, that's a special kind of crazy.

Another theory is that whoever stole the body could be someone who is opposed to cremation and did it to make a point.

It would be speculation at this point to comment on a possible motive, he says. But funeral home owner Robert Tips told the San Antonio Express-News that he and authorities "feel very strongly" that the person or persons responsible could have been ideologically opposed to cremation.

Link 3

This twisted story gets even twistier. A search party was formed to look for her body. They were stunned to find one. It wasn't hers.

SAN ANTONIO -- A search party looking for the body of Julie Mott was stunned to turn up the remains of a person Saturday. However, in yet another bizarre twist in the case, San Antonio police said they don't believe the remains belong to her. The body was discovered around 10:30 a.m. in a wooded area off the beaten path around McAllister Park, police said.

Link 4

This is one bizarre story. I hope that somebody steps forward and tells the police where the body is located so her family can have closure. I also hope that whoever took it spends a lot of time behind bars.

What do you say, fellow members? What are your opinions on this story?

I'd like to thank Kentuckymama for telling me about this. I had no idea that this had happened and wouldn't have if she hadn't told me about it.

a reply to: Skid Mark

You asked:

"What do you say, fellow members? What are your opinions on this story?"

Frankly, It is not the kind of story I want to see on ATS, but I could say that a lot about the character of ATS threads over the last couple of years. (But people probably say that about my offerings in threads and posts.)

a reply to: Aliensun
I gave my opinions. It's sick. Whoever did it is also sick. I hope that they get punished for it. I also hope that her family can give her a proper funeral and have closure.

a reply to: Skid Mark

Yes, I agree with that assessment, but I think we are bigger than that kind of a story usually reserved for the National Inquirer and the old pulps of yesteryear.

There is indeed a thin line between sensationalistic stories and sensational stories. For example, the thread(s) about the several Russian skiers that were mysteriously murdered in 1947 is of the latter type but the missing body of this woman is of the former type.

Another twisted brain there.
The story honestly sounds more like a fiction thriller plot than anything I would know as real life.
I couldn't find any further info on the second body except that it was mostly decomposed, appearing to have been in place for at least a month. Perhaps some family will find closure if an identification can be made.

TeAnother theory is that whoever stole the body could be someone who is opposed to cremation and did it to make a point. xt

a reply to: Skid Mark

This is the first thing I thought of when I read your post. Except I was thinking more on the lines of a close family member who didn't want to see her body cremated. This is what made me think of it...

I wanted to be cremated when I died, but when my kids and wife heard about it they were totally against it. I would rather give part of my life insurance to my kids rather than it go toward buying a casket, cement vault and a plot. Oh well, I have to honor my kids wishes so I guess I'm going to be planted in the ground.

Well, I think it is an interesting story. I had not heard of it until I read this thread. I think the OP did a good job of relating the story, providing links and opinions. Star and flag from me.

a reply to: WeRpeons
I'm leaning that way, myself. I think that somebody couldn't bear to see her cremated and took matters into his/her own hands.

a reply to: gwynnhwyfar
Thanks for the kind words. Today was the first time I'd heard of it, too. Knowing how the media is I'm surprised that they didn't make a bigger deal of it.

a reply to: diggindirt

Perhaps some family will find closure if an identification can be made.

That's true. Hopefully the body will be identified and her family will have a little more peace in their lives, instead of wondering what happened to her and never knowing.

a reply to: Skid Mark

What do we ATS fellows think about this story? Well, I guess it was awesome, ever inspiring, really made my day, and after reading the story, I really believe future of mankind will be bright and under spotless heaven. Or not.

a reply to: Skid Mark
Perhaps the fellow who was described in one link as being "obsessed" with her? If he couldn't have her in life, he would settle for her body.

I've heard of bodies being snatched from teaching hospitals but never from a funeral home. I'm guessing he might be under observation?

a reply to: Skid Mark

I take it that the body was already in the post autopsy state?

If so, it could be that the presence of the obsessed person at the funeral home could have been coincidental to the theft. It would not be unheard of, for the body to have been spirited away for a more discrete disposal, to cover up a massive organ theft, by the home itself.

I am not saying there is any evidence thereof, just making some suggestions for an alternative motive for the theft of the body.

You see, depending on the precise manner of her death Julie Mott's body may have had viable bone, liquids and organ matter, within it at the time the home received it. There is a massive black market for organs these days, and it is possible that the individual or individuals responsible for the theft, enacted it to cover up the replacement of bones with PVC pipes, and other tissues with assorted trash. If that body had been cremated, there is the possibility that by weighing, and then testing the ashes (ordinarily either interred in a vault, or held by the family) that the truth of such a thing could have become known.

Like I say, just throwing around some possible alternative motivations for the theft. It is, in my estimation, unlikely that a single individual, would have been able to smuggle the entire body out to a waiting vehicle, without attracting suspicion. Bodies, by their very nature, are not easy to lug for an individual, and are virtually impossible to shift discretely, unless one is covered either by legitimate presence in the context of the location itself, or assisted by an accomplice or two.

a reply to: TrueBrit
Organ theft crossed my mind. The owner of the funeral home is a family friend though. Still, that wouldn't stop some people.

The extremely odd thing is that whoever did it took the body in broad daylight. Right after the wake. I don't imagine that would be easy to do during the day.

a reply to: Skid Mark

Easy? Hardly. Even with two accomplices, the trick would be getting away unnoticed. With less or none, I cannot see how it could have been done by a person who was not supposed to be there at all!

a reply to: TrueBrit
That's what gets me. How did they do it? One would think there would have been a lot of people around. I doubt very much if they did the Weekend at Bernie's thing and walked her body out. Even if they had a setup where a vehicle could be pulled in for deliveries, they'd still have to get through people.