A horrified man, who works with medically donated bodies, claims someone left three three severed heads on his desk after he complained about office conditions.
Dale Wheatley, who works at an organisation that manages the donation of cadavers to medical schools, says the grim find came after he tried to blow the whistle on the shocking condition the bodies are kept in.
Mr Wheatley described the "deplorable" conditions at the Chicago non-profit, The Anatomical Gift Association of Illinois (AGA), including instances of donated cadavers being eaten by rats.
He has claimed that some bodies had to be returned by medical institutions due to their poor condition.
He said: "They’re sending donors back because of mould and rot, bugs. It’s deplorable."
He sounded the alarm during a press conference on June 6.
He said: "There's been instances where I've pulled donors from our storing room out of the racks, and rats have chewed through the bottom of the bag, through the feet."
According to the Chicago Tribune, AGA Executive Vice President William O’Connor denied any maltreatment accusations, saying that handling body parts is in Mr Wheatley’s job description.
Mr Wheatley has worked at the association for five years and says the situation there has only got worse, his lawyer said.
After a local university’s anatomy lab manager complained about the condition of cadavers, Mr Wheatley encouraged them to report her concerns to Mr O’Connor.
In an email to Mr O’Connor and Mr Wheatley, the lab manager reported that "flies were crawling on the bodies, that the limbs contained mould and rot, and that its students had become sick after being exposed to the bodies during the course of their studies".
It was after approaching his supervisors with his concerns Mr Wheatley found three severed heads from donated bodies on his desk.
Mr Wheatley said: "My boss walked by, I asked him why the heads were at my desk. He said they need to get back with their bodies so we can send them to cremation. I said, I understand that, 'Why are they at my desk?' and he said, 'I don't know Dale, there's a lot of strange things happening."
After this he filed a police report.
According to its website, the AGA works with at least eight medical schools in the state, and upholds the "highest standards of responsiveness, respect, privacy, and security."
But Mr Wheatley's allegations blow the lid off these claims.
He said: "Sometimes we do brain removals, and they’re not sewn up correctly."
He added: "I take great pride in what it is I’m doing and I treat these donors with the utmost respect. I understand they made a donation to science to further help us."
His attorney says they've requested an investigation into the AGA by the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office, the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.
They are not taking legal action against the AGA in the hope the organisation "cleans up its act."
The Mirror has reached out to the AGA for comment.
