The bones of broadcaster Alistair Cooke, who died in 2004 and whose legendary Letter from America became one of the BBC's most treasured dispatches, were stolen shortly before his cremation, it was alleged yesterday.
As his life's work drew tributes from both sides of the Atlantic, a criminal gang allegedly removed his bones and sold them for more than $7,000 (€5,896) to a company supplying parts for use in dental implants and other orthopaedic procedures, according to a story in the New York Daily News.
An investigation into the gang, which is alleged to have made millions from several hundred similar snatches, is being carried out by the Brooklyn district attorney's office.
Last week, the office called the Cooke family to say that his corpse had been mutilated and sold.
Cooke died of cancer in March 2004. His body was taken to a funeral home in Spanish Harlem on the upper east side of Manhattan and was cremated two days later. A few weeks after that, his family granted him his dying wish by sprinkling his ashes from Starbucks cups in Central Park.
"He died in the night and the undertakers collected him," recalled his step-daughter, Holly Rumbold, speaking to BBC radio yesterday. "His ashes - or what we thought were his ashes - were returned the next day. They were scattered in Central Park. Who knows? Maybe some of the ashes were his - how do you know? It defies the imagination. It's so corrupt and evil."
Ms Rumbold went on to express both frustration and fear that, given that her stepfather had had bone cancer, any transplant could compound the tragedy.
Cooke's daughter, Susan Kittredge, also expressed dismay: "That people in need of healing should have received his body parts, considering his age and the fact that he was ill when he died, is as appalling to the family as it is that his remains were violated."
A BBC spokeswoman said last night: "We share people's extreme revulsion at this news and our thoughts are with Alistair's family."
The gang accused of stealing Cooke's bones is at the heart of an extensive ring of conspirators including funeral homes, surgeons and biomedical companies.
Cooke's case is one of hundreds under investigation since the alleged ring was exposed around 18 months ago.