(Scroll down for St. Rose Hospital's statement)
The real estate deal is now the subject of a Metro Police criminal investigation, a case file with the Clark County public administrator and an inquiry by the North Carolina secretary of state.
Neighbors on Wishing Well Lane grew suspicious when strangers showed up in the house owned by long-time resident Morris Rozet.
The so-called new owners claimed they bought it from Rozet. The trouble is he died nine months before supposedly signing the paperwork.
Believe it or not, that is the least of concerns for Rozet's family. They're still trying to figure out why no one told them he had passed away.
As Bernard Rozet studies his dad's image, he can't help but wish he'd had more time. His childhood passed with few fatherly memories, but later in life the family had created albums full.
Bernard Rozet said, "Even like in his 60s, he would come over here and want to go windsurfing and we were like windsurfing."
The father of four, the grandfather of eight, Morris Rozet spent his retirement years in perpetual motion.
Bernard Rozet continued, "Him disappearing for that long of time, that's how he was, you know. And then he'd call, he'd always show up, you know."
But this time Bernard worried, it had been too long. And when the Channel 8 I-Team called his home in Hawaii, he knew why. His father had passed a year earlier and no one had notified the family.
Bernard Rozet said, "Here's a man in the hospital. Nobody's around him. He dies by himself. Can you imagine all the things that went through his mind?"
Morris Rozet died of cardiac arrest on March 11, 2005 at St. Rose hospital.
Clark County Social Services paid to have him cremated a month later and put his ashes in the public crypt believing he was indigent and alone.
In life, Rozet was neither.
Bernard Rozet said, "Everything he's done in life he's had back-ups for. That's why I can't understand how something like this just happens and nobody knows how to contact us."
The 77-year-old owned his home outright. Yet the day he died appears to be the last time anyone set foot in the house until a man looking to make a quick buck spotted an opportunity, and tried to take control of Rozet's house.
The Metro Police Department is investigating.
Rozet continued, "I've talked to my family about this whole situation. And they cannot believe this happened. This sounds like something they show on TV. You know what I mean?"
Bernard tries to keep his sense of humor considering, he said, "This should never happen."
His family faces the loss of their dad, his legacy and his last moments.
Privacy laws prevent the hospital and the county from discussing how all of this happened. Though St. Rose indicates in a written statement no next of kin information was available.
We can tell you Rozet's death certificate lists his address. So it's unclear why no one followed up on the house.
The public administrator, who's job it is to handle the estate, claims his office was never notified.
Statement from St. Rose Hospital:
St. Rose Dominican Hospitals can verify that Morris Arthur Rozet was a patient and died on March 11, 2005. Per federal privacy law (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) and hospital policy, St. Rose cannot discuss specifics related to the medical record of Morris Arthur Rozet with anyone beside his legally recognized next of kin.
In a situation such as this where the patient has not acknowledged or voluntarily listed next of kin, any person claiming to be next of kin must present "probate right" in order to view the patient's medical record or sign a hospital release enabling us to discuss the case with the media.
St. Rose Hospitals has had no direct contact with anyone claiming to be a member of Mr. Rozet's family. We strongly encourage Mr. Rozet's family to contact the hospital and present certified probate right so that we can help clear their issues.
Send feedback to I-Team reporter Colleen McCarty at cmccarty@klastv.com
Family photo of Morris Rozet with some of his grandchildren.
Bernard Rozet said, "Even like in his 60s, he would come over here and want to go windsurfing and we were like windsurfing."
Rozet family photo.
Morris Rozet with grandchild.
Morris Rozet's house on Wishing Well Lane.
