Following his arrest earlier this week, a man accused of having sexual relations with a deceased woman faces many counts.
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Randall Bird, 46, worked as a security guard at Banner University Medical Center in Phoenix, and his coworkers reportedly walked in on him “sweating profusely” with his zipper “wide open” when he was discovered alongside the body of a 79-year-old woman. Bird’s job as a security guard is to help with the morgue intake procedure, which takes around 10-15 minutes, and security guards are not allowed to open body bags. According to TOO FAB, Bird was left alone with the body on October 22, and his two coworkers returned to the morgue around an hour after intake, only to discover that the door was shut from the inside.
“Witnesses observed [Bird] inside the freezer. He was sweating profusely and was acting very nervous. They stated that [Bird] had removed his duty belt, which they observed on top of a gurney where a bagged deceased body was placed. [Bird’s] zipper on his uniform pants was wide open, and the rest of his uniform looked all messy,” court documents said.
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Bird allegedly informed his coworkers that he was experiencing a medical crisis and fainted while grasping the victim’s body when he fell, and that the body bag tore apart and the zipper snapped. His teammates informed their boss that neither the bag nor the zipper was broken. The victim’s body was turned upside down, and the body bag was unzipped, exposing a section of her torso. Before police were contacted on October 24, her hospital gown was “rolled up” and an internal probe was initiated.
After Bird claimed he didn’t remember what happened, DNA swabs revealed that his DNA matched DNA found on the victim. Banner Health also released a statement amid Bird’s arrest and said he was terminated from his position.
“Recently, Banner team members identified and reported concerning behavior of an employee in the hospital morgue. Banner initiated an internal investigation, filed a report with law enforcement and terminated the employee. Out of respect for the family, we will not further comment at this time.”
