PHILADELPHIA — Three funeral directors sold 244 corpses for about $1,000 each to a disgraced surgeon who trafficked in the resale of often-diseased body parts, a grand jury charged Thursday after a year-long investigation.

The stolen bones, skin and tissue — which are nearly impossible to trace from donor to recipient because of forged documents — were transplanted in unsuspecting medical patients worldwide, the grand jury found. Families of the dead had no idea the bodies were being ravaged.

Michael Mastromarino, who operated the now-defunct Biomedical Tissue Services of Fort Lee, N.J., ran the scheme with help from a team of "cutters" who stole the body parts, authorities said. Mastromarino is already facing charges in New York for allegedly plundering 1,077 bodies, including those from Philadelphia.

Funeral directors Louis Garzone, 65, of Philadelphia, Gerald Garzone, 47, of North Wales, and James McCafferty, 37, of Philadelphia, were arrested Thursday on thousands of counts, ranging from running a corrupt organization to forgery and theft of body parts.

CORAOPOLIS — The attorney for pro wrestler Kurt Angle disputed a drunken driving charge filed by police.Defense attorney Mike Santicola told WTAE-TV that he does not believe there's a basis for the charges.Police have "no firsthand knowledge of him operating a vehicle and they don't have any evidence of him operating a vehicle while intoxicated," Santicola said in a videotaped interview Thursday.Moon Township police said they charged Angle Sept. 28 after a motorist told them Angle cut her off while pulling out of a bar parking lot early that afternoon. Police went to Angle's home and, they said, he acknowledged driving home from the bar that afternoon, failed a field sobriety test and refused a blood test.Santicola said Angle refused the blood test on the advice of his agent, whom he called while police were at the house. Santicola denies that Angle failed the field sobriety test.Santicola said witnesses told him that Angle "did very well" on the field sobriety test and said police were wrong to say he failed the "subjective" test.