A woman says she "no longer feels the same comfort" about a grave she had reserved and paid for, after a stranger was mistakenly buried there, before his body was later exhumed.
Mary Lynn, 69, explains that she has reserved a plot of land behind her parents' graves in Deeping St James's Cemetery in Lincolnshire. She added that she felt “a great void” and “shocked” by the way the parish council (a church body headed by the parish priest) dealt with this mistake.
Earlier this year, the British Ministry of Justice granted a license to exhume the body of the person buried in Lin's grave, as a way to correct the error.
For its part, the Parish Council of Deeping St James said that it "acknowledges that an error has occurred" and apologizes for the "mental distress this matter has caused to the two families", confirming that the plot of land allocated for burial will be returned to Lin.
Lynn said that in 2013, she purchased the exclusive burial right in a plot of land located behind her mother’s grave, which was confirmed by a document issued by the Deeping St. James Parish Council, which the BBC viewed.
Lynn added: "I bought the plot of land to be close to my parents. What does it mean to be buried here if I cannot be next to my loved ones?"
Lynn said that she visited the cemetery in early 2023, only to be surprised that there was a person buried in the plot of land she had reserved.
“I stood there helpless,” Lynn recalls. “I didn’t know what to do, honestly. I had someone I didn’t know buried in my grave.”
Lynn explained that it took her more than three years to submit a request to move the body, noting that she did not have “any other option.” There was no other land available near her parents' cemetery.
Under the laws in force in England, the exhumation of a body buried in non-religiously consecrated land requires permission from the Ministry of Justice, and the process usually requires the approval of the next of kin of the deceased.
But the Ministry, in a letter addressed to the Parish Council of Deeping St. James, granted permission to exhume the body without the consent of the relatives of the deceased, despite the objections of his family based on “moral and religious” motives.
The Ministry explained that the decision came in light of the “lack of possible alternative solutions” that would allow “correcting the error,” and therefore it agreed to exhume the body.
The BBC tried to contact the family of the person whose body was exhumed.
Eric Lane, Mary Lane's 77-year-old husband, said the operation had a "devastating effect" on his wife.
Eric believes that the parish council “was unable to keep records sufficient to avoid such a mistake” and expressed concern that it could happen again.
The BBC raised this specific allegation to the parish council, and asked what measures were being taken to prevent similar errors in the future. But she did not receive any response.
Eric Lin said his wife "doesn't like" going to the cemetery now.
He added: "There is a lot of bitterness associated with this place, and I don't know if that will ever go away."
Mary Lynn said that she sympathizes with the family of the person who was mistakenly buried on their land, stressing that she understands what they faced.
She added: “I wanted to meet them (...) I asked the [Parish Council] to meet with them countless times, and the response was no.”
Mary Lynn added: “I feel very uncomfortable even when visiting the cemetery. We no longer frequent the place as much as we used to.”
