Charles Manson news: Five people come forward to claim notorious criminal's remains

Charles Manson is pictured in this July 16, 2011 handout photo from the California Department of Corrections.Reuters/California Department of Corrections/Handout

The late notorious American criminal, Charles Manson, may have passed away last month, but his final resting place has yet to be decided. This is due to the fact that multiple parties have come forward to claim his remains. The coroner at Bakersfield Hospital, where Manson's remains are kept, is being cautious with the situation since it is possible for things to turn into a complicated legal battle if Manson's corpse is given to the wrong party.

As reported by the Los Angeles Times, lawyers at Kern County, California, have been at work obtaining the necessary legal documents in order to make a sound decision as to which party should take the remains of the notorious former cult leader. Understandably, the coroner of Bakersfield Hospital has refused, for the moment, to hand over Manson's remains until the matter has been resolved legally.

It is possible that the coroner could get sued if he commits an error in judgment. One of Kern County's deputy attorneys, Bryan Walters, stated the oddness of the case of Manson's remains. Some of the individuals who have come forward to claim Manson's remains explained that they were long-time pen pals with the deceased criminal -- even going so far as to claim that they have Manson's "written wills."

Meanwhile, one of the other claimants stated that he is Manson's estranged grandson. 

At this point, the local authorities do not have the slightest idea on who to give the body to. Some of the claimants have come from very far places just to claim Manson's dead body -- specifically, from Florida, Wisconsin, Illinois and, of course, California. 

Manson is considered to be one of the most notorious psychopaths in the history of the United States. He was responsible for ordering the death of an 18-year-old student as well as Hollywood actress, Sharon Tate -- who also happened to be the former wife of director Roman Polanski. These are just some of the crimes that Manson committed before he was taken into custody. He died at the age of 83.