In a bizarre turn of events in London, a priest, Father McHardy, arrived at a seemingly elaborate funeral only to discover a shocking truth - the coffin was empty, and the mourners were hired actors, according to The Metro.
The extravagant ceremony featured a horse-drawn hearse, vintage cars, mourners in top hats, and a full choir, all dedicated to a young Latvian man named Lauris Zaube. However, before the service began, the choirmaster unveiled a disturbing secret, according to the news outlet.
It was revealed that there was no actual dead individual named Lauris, and the supposed brother who organized the service under the name "Clyde Zaube" had fabricated the entire story. He claimed Lauris had died frozen, even presenting a suspicious Russian death certificate. Investigations later uncovered that a missing Lauris Zaube did exist, but he was in Latvia near a frozen dam and very much alive. Furthermore, no brother named Clyde could be found.
Confronted with this shocking deception, Father McHardy could not proceed with the funeral and rightfully decided to cancel the fake ceremony. Father McHardy disclosed that the request for the funeral came in three or four weeks prior, and when questioned about the connection with the church, they were falsely told that there was one. The individual identifying as Clyde had apparently chosen the readings for the service.
"On the day of the funeral, it all started to unravel," shared Father McHardy. "The undertakers were going to collect the body, and then at the last minute, they were told, 'there is no body, we have ashes.'"
Father McHardy noted that there were two groups of 'mourners' in the church, one of which turned out to be actors, who, despite the strange circumstances, remained respectful and polite.
