Patrick Vereb Sr., the 72-year-old owner of western Pennsylvania-based Eternity Pet Memorial, pleaded guilty on Thursday to all charges in a case involving the theft of more than $650,000 from customers who paid for pet burial and cremation services between 2021 and 2024, Attorney General Dave Sunday announced.
Source: Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General
WPXI reported that Vereb pleaded guilty to all 10 counts in court on Thursday. He will be sentenced on the lead felony — first-degree theft by deception — on January 21 in Allegheny County, following a sentencing hearing. On Thursday his bail was also revoked and he was committed to prison.
Source: WPXI Pittsburgh
What investigators say happened
Vereb was charged last year with the improper disposal of thousands of dogs and cats whose owners had paid for cremations, burials, returns of ashes and other services. According to the Attorney General's investigation, he took money in exchange for private cremation services, then disposed of many of the pets at a landfill and provided customers with the ashes of other, unknown animals.
More than 6,500 victims from Allegheny, Armstrong, Washington and Westmoreland counties have been identified. After charges were filed, the Attorney General's office launched a dedicated webpage to identify and contact as many victims as possible.
Guilty plea to all charges on October 22; more than $650,000 taken from pet owners between 2021 and 2024; over 6,500 victims identified across four Pennsylvania counties; sentencing on the lead first-degree felony set for January 21.
"As a pet owner, I know that losing a pet is like losing a family member, and the defendant's conduct, without a doubt, worsened that pain for these victims," Attorney General Sunday said, adding that officials hope the felony conviction provides a measure of closure because it involves the defendant taking responsibility and admitting what he did.