A former Auckland undertaker has been jailed for two years and three months after improperly handling human remains and deceiving people to buy vaccines for their dead loved ones.
Fiona Bakulich, a former employee of Tipene Funerals, was also ordered to pay more than $16,900 in reparations.
The 48-year-old pleaded guilty to two charges of interfering with human remains and 12 charges of obtaining by deception in February.
She was required to correctly line and seal coffins with zinc prior to interment as part of her job.
The offending came to light when caskets were damaged during Cyclone Gabrielle.
In one case, a casket was disinterred to check for damage, which revealed the casket hadn’t been lined with zinc – instead the deceased had been wrapped in plastic.
In another, a casket which had been damaged was disinterred, revealing it had not been lined with zinc and the deceased had been placed without any protective covering except for clothing.
Between 2021 and 2024, Bakulich deceived seven families to pay her for Covid-19 immunisations and treatments for their deceased loved ones, which were not administered or required.
She also deceived one victim to pay her for an injection on the genitalia of their deceased loved one because of an infection.
No injections were administered or required.
In another instance, Bakulich deceived a victim to believe the Ministry of Health required $7000 to be paid for breaching Covid requirements during a funeral.
Her offending related to 11 victims in total.
