MD Woman Testifies Against Mom On Trial In Grandma's Death, Dismemberment

HYATTSVILLE, MD — A Maryland woman is on trial this week in the death of her mother, 71-year-old Margaret Craig, whose dismembered and burned body was discovered by police in trash bags in the basement of her Hyattsville home in May 2023.

Authorities said Craig's body was taken apart with a chainsaw and burned near her home.

The trial started with Candace Craig's daughter, Salia Hardy, 21, taking the stand. Hardy has already pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact. She testified that the killing happened after her grandmother accused her mother of stealing money from her bank account, according to DC News Now.

Hardy testified she saw her grandmother's body in a bin with a trash bag over her head and blood on the carpet in the home, according to FOX5. To dispose of the body, the women bought grilling supplies and a can of gasoline, but when Craig tried to burn the remains behind the home the fire spread and neighbors called the fire department.

The next day, Hardy and Craig, 46, moved the grisly remains inside the home. Craig bought a chainsaw on Amazon and cut up her body in the basement, Hardy testified.

On June 2 shortly after 1:30 p.m., Prince George's County police officers were called to the home in the 200 block of Hill Road in Landover, for a welfare check. The family member who contacted police said he had not been able to reach Margaret Craig for several days and was worried about her.

Another family member noticed a foul odor in the basement when she stopped by that day. When police made the welfare check, officers noticed the odor of decomposition and saw what appeared to be brain matter and suspected dismembered human remains in trash bags, WUSA reported.

Court documents revealed that, "Upon entering the basement, officers immediately recognized the smell of putrefaction and observed blood and tissue on the floor near three white plastic trash bags."

See also:

• Grandmother Slain, Daughter And Granddaughter Charged
• 'Horrifying' Mother, Daughter Used Chainsaw To Dismember Grandmother's Body: Prosecutor