According to The Straits Times, the body of the late Kee Kin Tiong, who passed away at 82 years of age, was supposed to be received by his family at their void deck on Dec. 30, where a Taoist wake would be held for him.
The funeral home, Harmony Funeral Care, oversaw the process.
However, Kee was mistakenly sent to the Christian funeral of a 70-year-old man and later cremated at Mandai Crematorium.
This is the first reported case of a wrong body being cremated in Singapore
The two bodies were lying in the same room at Hock Hin Undertaker, which is a business that is also owned by Harmony Funeral Care.
Kee's son-in-law, identified only by his surname Ho, told ST that a male employee was responsible for the mix-up, collecting Kee's body by mistake from the embalmer.
The employee had reportedly told Kee's family that he had verified the body through facial recognition.
The family has also requested to see CCTV footage at the undertaker premises and the time of collection, but Ho claimed that the funeral home told the family that the CCTV footage from that time period was not there.
The employee has since been suspended.
Kee's family has sought legal advice, and the case is currently being investigated by the police and the National Environment Agency.
Top photo via Pixabay