Maryland man receives 20-year sentence for pet crematorium scam

Rodney Ward returned debris instead of pets’ ashes and stored animals’ bodies in hearse or threw them out on road

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A Baltimore county man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after being found guilty of defrauding pet owners through his fake crematorium business, returning rocks and sand to grieving victims instead of ashes.

On Tuesday, 56-year-old Rodney Ward was also ordered to pay $12,510 in restitution to victims. He had pleaded guilty to one count of felony theft and five counts of malicious destruction of property over $1,000, according to the Baltimore county state’s attorney’s office.