Associated Press
YAKIMA — When Garland Benintendi’s six sons carried his casket out of the Central Assembly of God Church, they were told there was a little transportation problem — the hearse had vanished.
"We kind of looked at each other and said, ‘I guess Dad wanted to stay around for another half hour,’ " said David Benintendi, one of the sons.
The white 1993 Cadillac hearse — parked outside the church, with the keys in the ignition — had been stolen.
"Nothing’s sacred," police Sgt. Mike Costello said.
David said his 80-year-old father, a former pastor and missionary, would have seen the humor in it all.
"He would have thought it was hilarious," Benintendi said. "He was quite a guy."
The funeral was Feb. 5, and the hearse turned up 17 days later in the parking lot of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Olympia, 115 miles west of Yakima. It was locked and undamaged.
Shaw and Sons Funeral Directors confirmed Wednesday that the hearse had been returned, but declined any further comment.
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