Drugs Put The "Fun" In Funeral Home

Whelchel Funeral Chapel

Branson, Mo — A 24-year-old man living in an apartment at a Branson funeral home was charged Wednesday with possessing methamphetamine and cocaine after a drug task force raid late Tuesday night at the business.

According to a news release from COMET — the Combined Ozarks Multi-Jurisdictional Enforcement Team —a large amount of meth, marijuana and a set of digital scales were located in a casket in the basement of Whelchel Funeral Chapel in downtown Branson.

COMET. Someone stayed up all night to come up with that one.
We're going to clean up this town !

A meth pipe was found in the garage where hearses were parked, and it was determined that embalming fluid had been used to enhance the effect of the other drugs.

"Illegal contraband was in disarray throughout the living quarters of the business as well as the business itself," the release said.

The raid was part of an ongoing investigation of an individual living at the funeral home, a task force statement said.

Over the past eight months, COMET has searched the property three times. Two previous raids also netted narcotics in the apartment.

Dude ! They found your stash there twice and you still kept your junk there ? Dude.


Brice Miller

Five people have been arrested as a result of the investigation, but as of Wednesday afternoon, only Brice Miller, 24, has been charged, Taney County Prosecutor Jeff Merrell said.

The funeral home, as well as another Whelchel Funeral Home in Forsyth, are owned by funeral director Brad Miller, who inherited the business when his father, Ed Miller, died in 2001.

Authorities did not specify the relationship between Brad Miller and Brice Miller.

Brad Miller could not be reached for comment.

An employee at the funeral home who declined to be named said the funeral home was open for business as usual Wednesday.

So does this mean I can get my fix there... as usual ?

Brice Miller is charged with three counts of possession of a controlled substance and was being held in the Taney County Jail in lieu of $75,000 bond on Wednesday. Punishment on each count could be up to seven years in prison or a $5,000 fine, Merrell said.

The probable cause statement issued by the task force said a glass pipe with meth residue was found in Brice Miller's shirt pocket, another pipe was found under a recliner in the living room, and a baggie containing meth was found in an upstairs guest bedroom.

A bag of meth also was found in the pocket of a pair of blue jeans in the master bedroom. In the parlor area of the basement, where pre-funeral services are conducted, a folded piece of paper that contained cocaine was found under a recliner, the statement said.

Other items found during the search included a marijuana grinder, marijuana in a screw-cap container on a key chain and a baggie with meth residue on a kitchen cabinet.

Dude. Seriously. Moderation.

The use of embalming fluid to heighten drug stimulation is not uncommon, said Branson Police Chief Caroll McCullough.

Branson police assisted the task force team in making entry into the building Tuesday, McCullough said. One Branson officer is assigned to the task force that represents eight counties.

"Embalming fluid can be added to different drugs to increase the weight," McCullough said.

"They dip marijuana cigarettes in it, and it enhances the high ... putting chemicals which are harmful into your body."

Embalming fluid. Never tried that. Now I'm dying to try it.