Former funeral home employee charged in connection to a skull found in Wisconsin in 2002

A former funeral home employee has been arrested for reportedly stealing the skull of a woman who passed away in 2001 before she was cremated.

Benjamin Hanson, 57, was arrested Wednesday in connection with a stolen skull discovered in St. Croix County, Wisconsin, back in 2002.

Decades after the discovery of the skull, it was later determined to have belonged to Alice Peterson, a 92-year-old woman who had passed away in July 2001 after suffering a medical incident. While her body was believed to have been cremated, the DNA Doe Project later identified the skull as belonging to Peterson.

SEE ALSO: Authorities investigating how a cremated woman’s skull was found in St. Croix County

The St. Croix County Sheriff’s Office said the skull was discovered by Boy Scouts who were camping in Somerset Township on Oct.19, 2002. The skull was inside a black garbage bag, around 20-40 yards off a roadway to the camp. Scouts had opened the bag using a stick and discovered the skull, bringing it to their scout leaders, who in turn brought it to a ranger station.

DNA and forensic testing would continue for over two decades until the DNA Doe Project identified the remains as belonging to Peterson in 2024.

Following this discovery, an investigation was launched to determine how Peterson’s skull was not cremated and ended up in Somerset township.

After multiple interviews with current and former Simonet Funeral Home employees, investigators determined that in 2001, Hanson was the funeral director and had worked with the Peterson family regarding Alice’s cremation and funeral.

Court documents state Hanson would have been one of the only people who would have had access to Peterson’s body in 2001. He is also believed to have falsely billed the Peterson family for services.

Hanson has been charged with hiding a corpse and felony theft over $2,500 dollars.

An attorney for Simonet Funeral Home sent a statement to 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS stating, in part, that the situation unfolded under the business’ previous owners and that the current owners never employed Hanson.

“At all times, the current owners have fully cooperated with law enforcement and will continue to do such,” the statement concludes. “The current owners of Simonet Funeral Home stand ready to serve families in their time of need with the dignity and respect that decedents and mourners deserve, just as they have since 2013.”
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