FBI investigators on Nov. 1 seized records of a Gresham-based cadaver procurement company as part of a criminal investigation.

Agents served the search warrant at MedCure's local office, 18111 N.E. Sandy Blvd., confirmed FBI spokesperson Beth Anne Steele.

No charges have been filed against MedCure and Steele wouldn't say what investigators were looking for. "The case is ongoing," she said.

The search was first reported by the Reuters news agency.

"MedCure is fully cooperating with the FBI, and looks forward to resolving whatever questions the government may have about their business," said Jeffrey Edelson, a Portland lawyer who represents the company. "Out of respect for the integrity of the process, we do not believe that further comment is appropriate at this time."

MedCure calls itself a "tissue bank that connects whole-body donors to medical researchers and medical education facilities." It solicits cadavers from people who want to donate their body to science and from families looking for a cheap alternative to a traditional funeral.

"Donation Coordinators are available 24 hours a day to answer your questions and assist you with the whole-body donation process," MedCure says on its website. "We have an inherent respect for individuals both living and deceased and commit ourselves to compassionate care and the highest ethical standards."

The company claims to have 82,000 registered donors.

It provides bodies and organs to researchers and schools. It also offers on-site surgical training facilities at its offices in Gresham, as well as Henderson, Nev., and Cumberland, R.I.

It is illegal to profit from the sale of organs destined for transplant, such as hearts and kidneys. But, as detailed in a series by Reuters last month, it is legal is most states to sell donated whole bodies or their dissected parts, such as arms and heads, for medical research, training and education.

-- Jeff Manning