LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — The woman who burglarized a funeral home, removing a casket with a body inside and then dumping the remains, will avoid prison time and instead enter a court-ordered drug treatment program, the 8 News Now Investigators have learned.
Patricia Sierra, 47, originally faced charges including grand larceny, burglary of a business, and removing, transforming or disturbing human remains, documents said. Sierra pleaded guilty to one count of burglary as part of a plea agreement signed Sept. 24.
As part of the plea deal, Sierra agreed to enter Clark County District Court’s drug court program and receive probation, documents said. The specialized program requires a defendant to enter treatment, be tracked with electronic monitoring and receive random drug testing,
Clark County District Court Judge Tara Clark Newberry sentenced Sierra to the program on Dec. 5. Should Sierra violate probation, she would have to serve at least a year in prison, documents said.
On Aug. 27 around 3 a.m., a person called police to report a body lying face down in front of the Affordable Cremation and Burial Service funeral home on Charleston Boulevard near Rancho Drive. Police said the deceased person arrived at the facility on Aug. 20 and had a viewing the day before the burglary.
Video surveillance from the business showed a woman, whom police later identified as Sierra, breaking a window and unlocking the funeral home’s front door, documents said. The video then shows Sierra walking to the viewing room and carrying the casket out the front door. Police said the body in the casket ended up lying in landscaping in front of the business.
Sierra remained in custody Monday while awaiting her first appearance in the drug court program.
