LINCOLN, Ark. — An Arkansas woman has been arrested after police say they located her dead mother "mummified" in newspapers inside her home.
According to a preliminary report, Gloria Pike, 72, was reported missing by her brother in July 2021, who lives next door. He said he hadn't seen Gloria since August 2020 and that she had stage four breast cancer.
Gloria lived with her daughter, Geanee Pike, 54, in a home in Lincoln.
According to the preliminary report, after several attempts to contact Gloria, officers spoke with Geanee, who stated her mom wasn't missing. When asked if they could look inside the home, Geanee refused to let officers inside. She also told police that she had no access to her mom's bank account or check card.
Through an investigation into Gloria's disappearance, police subpoenaed her bank account records, and it showed a transaction at a Dollar General in Lincoln in July 2021.
According to the preliminary report, after reviewing surveillance footage from Dollar General, investigators identified Geanee Pike using her missing mother's check card.
A search warrant was filed for financial identity fraud for Geanee's home. During a search of her home, it was determined that the house was in deplorable living conditions, and there was no running water. According to the preliminary report, human feces and urine were being collected in buckets around the house. The body of a female was located on a bed in the living room/kitchen area right next to Geanee's bedroom. Police say the mummified corpse was wrapped in newspaper from 2020 and bedding.
Geanee was home when the search warrant was issued.
After the body was found, police read Geanee her Miranda Rights and she admitted that her mom had died sometime at the end of 2020 of natural causes. She said she didn't report it but just covered her up with a blanket.
After her death, police say Geanee continued to use Gloria's social security disability money deposited into her mother's account every month. Geanee told police her mom owed her money then said she would pay it back when she got her own disability money back pay from the government.
Geanee was arrested and faces multiple charges, including financial identity fraud and abuse of a corpse.
Gloria's body has been sent to the Arkansas State Crime Lab to identify the cause and manner of death.