Former Legacy funeral director Robert Bush is due to make a high-profile extra appearance at Hull Crown Court today.
He previously denied 31 charges, including preventing the lawful and decent burials of deceased people and one offence of theft from charities, and he admitted 36 fraud-related offences. Bush, now 48, formerly of Kirk Ella, but recently of East Busk Lane, Otley, West Yorkshire, was involved with the running of the Legacy funeral homes.
He entered pleas to 67 charges during his second appearance at Hull Crown Court last year. Two extra fraud charges had been added to the previous ones.
The latest hearing in the case is due to be before High Court judge Mr Justice Hilliard, who was previously at the court for the most recent hearing. It is listed from 11am.
When an eight-week trial was originally fixed in the case for October 5 this year, it was due to take place at Sheffield Crown Court. But it emerged in January this year that the trial was being moved back to Hull Crown Court after it was decided that the case could, after all, now be accommodated at the Hull court.
There are, at today’s hearing, likely to be significant further developments in the case. Bush has denied 30 charges involving preventing the lawful and decent burial of dead people and he also denied one offence of theft from a series of charities.
He admitted 30 offences of fraud by false representation to the families or, in one case, a friend of a deceased person. He also admitted fraudulent trading and five offences of fraud by false representation to customers of Legacy Funeral Homes or individual people.
Updates will appear in the blog below.