‘Urban explorer’ finds 89 sets of ashes in abandoned church

By MARK GILLISPIE
Associated Press

CLEVELAND (AP) — Ohio investigators have found 89 sets of cremated remains in an abandoned Akron church. The state attorney general’s office said Thursday that the search was conducted Tuesday at the Greater Faith Missionary Baptist Church. A search warrant affidavit says an “urban explorer” spotted the remains Sunday and contacted the Ohio State Bureau of Embalmers and Funeral Directors. The church belongs to 41-year-old Shawnte Hardin. Hardin faces 44 criminal counts including racketeering, identity theft and abuse of a corpse. His attorney says Hardin had been storing the unclaimed cremains since 2017 as a favor to a former funeral director.