Two directors at a funeral parlour forced to close appeared in court for the first time after being charged with preventing the lawful burial of a dead body.

Richard Elkin and Hayley Bell appeared before magistrates after a police investigation into practices at their funeral home.

Elkin, 48, and Bell, 41, have been charged with preventing the lawful and decent burial of a dead body after a report was made to Hampshire Constabulary.

The funeral home bosses have also been charged with fraud.

The pair appeared at Portsmouth Magistrate Court, and spoke only to confirm their names, address, and date of birth.

The matter was referred straight to the Crown Court as the charge is an 'indictable only' offence - and can only be heard in a higher court.

The pair run Elkin and Bell Funerals in Gosport, which closed its doors in December last year. It reportedly closed after a visit from the bailiffs.

From now, and until they next appear in court, the business owners are not allowed to contact any previous customers of the funeral home.

Prosecutor Laura Jenking-Rees said the bail conditions have been made "perfectly clear to them".

Elkin has been charged with intentionally or recklessly causing a public nuisance, preventing the lawful and decent burial of a dead body, carrying on a business with intent to defraud creditors/for other fraudulent purpose, and two counts relating to the making and use of a 'false instrument'.

He has also been charged with possession of pepper spray.

Bell has been charged with intentionally or recklessly causing a public nuisance, preventing the lawful and decent burial of a dead body, and carrying on a business with intent to defraud creditors/for other fraudulent purpose.

The offences are said to date from June 2022 to December 2023.

Elkin and Bell, who both live in Gosport, will next appear at Portsmouth Crown Court on January 13.

After the pair were charged, a Hampshire Constabulary spokesman said: "This has been a complex investigation in which police have engaged with the affected families throughout, before submitting a file to the Crown Prosecution Service in June this year.

"We have now secured charges for two people in this investigation, and we urge the public not to speculate on the circumstances in order to allow the criminal justice process to run its course without any impediment."