Pet cremation scandal suspect set for arraignment
The procedure for Patrick Vereb of Hazelwood will take place at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Allegheny County Courthouse.
By TAWNYA PANIZZI
TribLive
Terry Onufer will never get a pet cremated again.
The Buffalo Township resident is still reeling after Patrick Vereb, owner of Harrison and Pittsburgh funeral homes and pet crematoriums, was charged in April with allegedly discarding animals in landfills.
“He had disrespect and disregard for our pup and others,” Onufer told TribLive this week. “The guy got greedy, preyed on innocent people when they were at their most vulnerable and then pretended to care. He took pet owners’ money, and worse, threw their pets in the trash.”
Vereb, 70, of Hazelwood is scheduled to be arraigned at 2 p.m. Wednesday at the Allegheny County Courthouse.
He previously waived charges to court prior to a preliminary hearing May 9.
Vereb faces charges filed by the state Attorney General’s Office of theft of about $660,000 from customers who paid for pet cremations, burials, returns of ashes and other services from 2021 to 2024. He is also accused of giving customers ashes that weren’t from their pets.
There are more than 6,500 alleged victims to date.
Vereb was not able to be reached for comment. Phone numbers at both of his business locations have been disconnected.
Tina Moore of Greensburg believes victims are in for an exhausting legal process. She is among the more than 3,500 people to join the Facebook group, Victims of Vereb, since it was created in May.
“To be honest, I am afraid that he will get off easy,” said Moore, who paid to have her cats — Pickle, Daisy and LaLa — cremated by Vereb. She learned, instead, that they may have been tossed into a garbage dump.
“I don’t have high hopes for him rotting away in a jail cell.”
Tiffany Mantzouridis, the funeral home intern who blew the lid off Vereb’s actions late last year, said the case haunts her.
“For the past nine months, I have been fighting for justice,” said Mantzouridis, of Irwin.
“I have nightmares nearly every night due to the emotional toll from what I witnessed and experienced, and it has severely affected both my physical and mental health.”
Mantzouridis worked for Vereb only a few months when she started questioning practices. She took photos and copied receipts that prove there were no crematory records for pets under 30 pounds.
She guessed that Vereb was processing larger pets and doling out those ashes to people who brought small animals to his facility.
Mantzouridis quit the job and took her hunch to Allegheny County Police.
“As the whistleblower, I have always believed that stepping forward was the right thing to do for all the victims that were hurt by these unimaginable actions,” she said.
“I continue to worry about the families who trusted this establishment with their loved ones, both human and animal, and who are still waiting for justice.”
Mantzouridis continues to work with the Attorney General’s Office as the case progresses.
“Nothing can undo the harm that has been done, and in my mind there is no punishment severe enough to take away the pain inflicted on the thousands of families affected or to bring back our sweet fur babies,” she said. “But, we can continue to pursue justice and fight for change.”
Anticipating a crowd to gather outside the courthouse, the Attorney General’s Office issued an alert to urge peaceful protests against Vereb.
The office recognized that the charges caused widespread anguish and heartbreak but maintained that the criminal justice system allows for due process.
Onufer said his Entlebucher Mountain Dog, Jaggy, was cremated in early 2016. His pet’s cremation did not fall within the time frame of the charges against Vereb.
Still, it doesn’t relieve his disgust. And he wonders if the ashes that he received belonged to Jaggy.
“I know there are a lot of people like us, very upset,” Onufer said.
“We don’t care about the money. It’s the deception and learning your beloved pup was treated like garbage.”
