Patrick Vereb, 70, of Pittsburgh, is facing charges after prosecutors say he allegedly threw out the bodies of thousands of pets whose owners paid for burial and cremation services and replaced them with ashes of other animals.

Patrick Vereb is accused of taking over $650,000 from customers who paid for dog and cat burial and cremation services between 2021 and 2024 in Western Pennsylvania.

There might be more than 6,500 victims of suspect Patrick Roy Vereb, the 70-year-old owner of Vereb Funeral Home and Eternity Pet Memorial, state prosecutors said.