Pittsburgh-Area Couple Lived With Decomposing Corpse For Months: Police

PITTSBURGH, PA — Police are searching for a Pittsburgh-area couple facing criminal charges after allegedly living with the decomposing body of a man for months while they continued to cash his social security checks.

According to court records, James Bebout, 69, and Debbie Bebout, 64, of Canton Township are charged with theft by unlawful taking, criminal conspiracy and abuse of a corpse. felony theft and criminal conspiracy as well as abuse of a corpse.

Greene Washington Regional Police said in January, the body of Michael Bebout, 64, was found in an advanced state of decomposition in the home he shared with James and Debbie Bebout.

For unclear reasons, James Bebout alerted police of the death of his brother in January. Authorities believe that given the condition of Michael Bebout's body that he had been dead for about six months.

"He was a skeleton with clothes," Green Washington Regional Police Chief William DeForte told WTAE-TV.

Although the gruesome discovery was made in January, charges were not filed until Wednesday until toxicology test results on Michael Bebout's body were completed. The tests determined that no foul play had occurred.

DeForte told WPXI-TV that James and Debbie Bebout deposited more than $20,000 in Michael Bebout's government benefits into their accounts while his body was in his bed deteriorating.