A Texas mortuary owner has been arrested for allegedly using the severed arms of corpses for twisted science experiments before sending them to the crematorium.

Adeline Ngan-Binh Bui, 50, was taken into custody earlier this month after a police raid uncovered power tools tainted with human remains and a chilling digital trail of experimental notes, including photos of detached arms in various states of decomposition, KVUE News reported.

The ‘experiments’ allegedly involved Bui injecting formaldehyde – a colorless gas used to preserve specimens in medical labs – into the arms of dead bodies and observing how the chemical affected the lifeless flesh.

Bui was ultimately charged with abuse of a corpse and five counts of tampering with governmental records, though she has since been released on a $27,500 bond.

‘Our legal team remains fully committed to defending and advocating for our client, Adeline Bui, with the expectation of fairness and due process,’ Jessica Huynh, Bui’s attorney, told People. 

The disturbing revelations began unfolding on April 2, when the Texas Funeral Service Commission (TFSC) alerted the Austin Police Department’s Homicide Unit about gruesome allegations linked to Capital Austin Mortuary Services and its owner, Bui, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by KVUE News. 

An investigator with the TFSC told police that, a month earlier, a former embalmer  accused Bui of fraudulently filing at least 10 death certificates using his name and license – all without his consent.

In a shocking twist, the embalmer also revealed that he had learned about alleged ‘experiments’ Bui was carrying out on severed arms inside the mortuary.

These so-called experiments entailed Bui injecting formaldehyde into the arms to observe ‘the effect it had over time on severed extremities’, according to the affidavit.

Once Bui was done experimenting on the arms, according to the TFSC investigator, ‘the severed body parts to be placed in the crematory retort, where the body parts in their dissected and disturbed state, would be cremated’.

The former employee who filed the initial complaint showed police a screenshot from a work computer dated December 2023, appearing to show Bui documenting updates on her ‘project’ under a conversation thread named ‘Freedom Art Experiment’.

The thread also featured images of what authorities described as severed arms, each progressing through various states of decomposition. 

After reviewing the evidence obtained thus far, investigators said they uncovered a staggering 129 instances where Bui allegedly used the embalmer’s name – each time without his consent or knowledge – to file official death certificates with the State of Texas.

Based on the evidence, ADP concluded that Bui was deliberately falsifying death certificates to continue operating her business, take in bodies and profit – all while ‘likely committing the offense of Abuse of a Corpse’.

On April 10, the Austin Police Department obtained a search warrant for Capital Austin Mortuary, where investigators soon discovered power tools tainted with human remains.

During the search, officers interviewed Bui, who ultimately confessed to the disturbing acts she had carried out at her business – including that household power tools were used during the process.  

According to the affidavit, Bui admitted to using the former embalmer’s identity to complete and submit official death documents through the state, each time without his knowledge or consent.

Authorities said Bui also came clean about forging his signature on a Death Certificate Amendment Form, using his driver’s license to submit the application when he was no longer employed at the mortuary.

Shockingly, Bui admitted to her bizarre experiments while speaking to investigators, explaining further that she had directed her own employees to take part in the project.

Bui confessed to ordering her employees to conduct experiments on the corpses, which aimed to study the effect of the embalming fluid on the limb – both with and without the chemical, according to the court docs.

This process included ‘cutting heads, arms and spines from remains sent to her facility while acting in the licensed capacity as a mortuary’, investigators said.

The affidavit also claimed that Bui collaborated with MedtoMarket – a medical-training company – on the project, allegedly experimenting on up to 15 bodies with the facility’s permission and keeping them updated on the results.

In a search warrant obtained by KXAN, investigators seized an iPhone and an iPad, believing they contained further communication between Bui and an official from MedtoMarket.

Investigators spoke to the company’s CEO, who they explained had a contract with Bui’s mortuary for ‘transport and cremation services.’ 

Though the CEO denied any ‘experimental testing’, he confirmed that he had knowledge of the mortuary embalming arms to see how long they could be preserved.

According to KVUE, he also denied going to the mortuary to observe the project’s process for himself, while stressing once again that it was ‘just embalming and not testing’.

When officers asked if that was normal practice in the industry, the CEO responded that ‘medical schools do it all the time, yeah’, according to the affidavit.

The police department spoke with the executive director of the TFSC, attempting to determine if there was ‘any possible legal way’ for Bui’s mortuary to have been granted permission to carry-out experiments on the remains obtained from the medical-training facility. 

The executive director explained that Capital Mortuary ‘is not a registered anatomical facility’, adding that it is ‘performing embalming services beyond the licensed scope of its authority’.

In regards to Bui performing them at her mortuary specifically, the executive director emphasized that ‘it is unlawful for a commercial embalming establishment to use a dead human body for research or educational purposes’.

Austin Police Department confirmed on Wednesday that the TFSC’s administrative investigation and the department’s criminal investigation remains active and ongoing.

‘APD and the TFSC are committed to enforcing state regulations, protecting the public from predatory practices and ensuring that decedent remains are treated with dignity and respect in accordance with Texas law,’ the APD said in the statement. 

Bui was booked into the Travis County Jail on April 18, but has since been released on bond.

Although she has not yet entered a plea, she is expected back in court on May 9.