Man accused of stealing van with corpse inside from Rockford funeral home arrested
The man accused of stealing a van from a Rockford funeral home with a dead body inside is in custody.
According to the Rockford Police Department, Deon Howard, 23, was arrested in Green Bay, Wisconsin on Sunday.
The police department did not provide any additional details on the arrest. According to the Brown County, Wisconsin jail records, Howard faces multiple charges, including possession of a firearm of a felon and resisting or obstructing an officer.
The crime occurred Jan. 21 when a Collins & Stone Funeral Home van parked at the 128 S. Fifth St. business was left unlocked, with the engine running. The vehicle was unattended, police said, allowing a suspect to enter it and drive away with a body inside.
More:How a Rockford funeral home is still operating after theft of corpse
The van was recovered the next day in Chicago. The body of Curtis Brown, 47, of Rockford, was recovered Jan. 23 in the 8200 block of South Manistee Avenue on Chicago's south side.
Brown's brother, Ed, told the Register Star he, his mother and other family members residing in Tupelo, Mississippi, did not learn of the theft until two days after it occurred.
The family says they plan on suing.
There's no word on if or when Howard will be brought back to Rockford to face charges.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Man accused of stealing van from Rockford funeral home arrested
