The Body Snatcher: Michael Mastromarino—Revisit
We are revisiting the wild and unforgettable story of Michael Mastromarino, a former dentist and oral surgeon turned "body snatcher". This unusual true crime story, which made national headlines in 2005, exposes a horrific black market trade and has victims whose final wishes were utterly betrayed.
This is a re-release of our original 2020 episode, brought back because the details of this shocking case connect directly to our current bonus series on the Netflix documentary, The Kings of Tupelo.
From Dr. Mike to Ghoul: Michael Mastromarino, a New York University-trained dentist, lost his license due to struggles with substance abuse and malpractice. Forced to find a new career, he established Biomedical Tissue Services (BTS) in 2001.
The Illegal Racket: Mastromarino began operating an illegal tissue recovery racket out of Brooklyn funeral homes. Instead of obtaining cadavers through safe and legal means, he was taking tissue and bone from people whose families did not give consent.
A Horrific Deception: Mastromarino would pay for access to a deceased body. He and his employees would then surgically remove arms, legs, bones, ligaments, tendons, and skin to sell for transplantation, making between $10,000 and $15,000 per body.
The PVC Pipes: For bodies slated for burial, Mastromarino’s team would carefully remove the bones and replace them with PVC pipes to maintain the body's structure for an open-casket viewing. They also forged ages and causes of death on official certificates.
Join us as we detail how a tip from a suspicious new funeral home owner in Brooklyn unraveled one of the most disrespectful and shocking crimes in modern history—a case that revealed the grim consequences when profit dictates the post-mortem process.
Don't miss the full connection: Our bonus episodes this month cover The Kings of Tupelo and reveal how that story links back to the "Body Snatcher." You can listen to the bonus content now by subscribing on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or through our patreon.
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