The family of a man who was cremated by mistake after a funeral home accidentally put a stranger's body in his coffin have filed a lawsuit. Jerry Moon's family only discovered the devastating blunder when they opened the casket to say their final goodbyes and found the other body wrapped in a plastic bag. While the body of the loving father - who was terrified of cremation - was accidentally incinerated at Dahl McVicker Funeral Home in Kelso, Washington State. The family of Jerry Moon, pictured with his wife Janice, were distraught when they found another man's body in his coffin . A lawsuit filed by the family claims the Brown Mortuary put the body of 97-year-old Robert Petitclerc in the coffin by mistake . The family is now seeking unspecified damages for emotional distress. Chronically ill in his final years, Mr Moon began arranging for his funeral 16 years before his death in 2013. The 72-year-old railroad conductor had paid $4,655 to be buried in a family plot in Chehalis, Washington, according to a lawsuit filed in Lewis County Superior Court. The prepaid services also included embalming, a funeral and a graveside service. After he passed away at a hospice in Longview on October 13, the funeral home was responsible for transporting his body to the Brown Mortuary for a burial. But Shawn Briggs, an attorney representing Moon's family, said his identification bracelet had been placed on another body. Jerry Moon, pictured with at Weyerhaeuser Railroad where he worked for 28 years, was chronically ill in his final years and had began arranging for his funeral 16 years before his death in 2013 . Born in Chehalis, Mr Moon, a father and stepfather to six, spent most of his life in Southwest Washington . According to family members, Mr Moon's funeral was a touching goodbye to the man they loved. At the end of the service, they opened the casket. But they were horrified to find the body of Robert Petitclerc - dressed in Jerry Moon's clothes and with a picture of Moon's wife tucked under the pillow in the coffin. Plastic had been wrapped round his head and face. 'This makes me feel like he was treated as a number, not a person,' daughter Cheryl Moon told KIROTV.com at the time. 'I turned around and said to myself three times, 'That's not him, that's not him, that's not him,' son Randy Moon told the station. The mistake is all the more surprising as Mr Moon was 72 and bald while Mr Petitclerc was 97 and had a full head of hair, the lawsuit said. 'It was horrifying,' Mr Briggs told the Seattle Pi. The family, who had been given a bill of $8,834 by Brown Mortuary for the service, would only later learn that the mix up at the funeral home meant Mr Moon's had been cremated. Mr Moon, pictured with wife Janice, had paid $4,655 to be buried in a family plot in Chehalis, Washington, according to a lawsuit filed in Lewis County Superior Court . Grieving: Moon's son Randy says he believes his father is in Heaven, regardless of who was in the casket . Sadly the discovery was even more upsetting for the family as Mr Moon had always been scared of cremation. 'He was afraid of cremation,' Mr Briggs added. 'He had religious beliefs that were inconsistent with cremation.' Born in Chehalis, Mr Moon, a father and stepfather to six, had spent most of his life in Southwest Washington. Brown Mortuary initially claimed the body was Mr Moon, but later admitted he had been cremated on October 17, 2013, by mistake, according to the lawsuit. The mortuary later sent a $92.72 refund check to Janice Moon. Relatives have now filed a lawsuit against the two mortuaries that mishandled Mr Moon's remains. It says the mortuary acted fraudulently and with malice in its handling of Jerry Moon's body and conspired to cover-up the fact that Mr Moon had been mistakenly cremated. The mortuary is part of a funeral service chain owned by Texas-based Service Corporation International. Representative Kim Tarleton declined to comment on the allegations, saying it would be 'inappropriate to share any details about this situation.'
Jerry Moon, 72, had pre-arranged to be buried in a family plot in Chehalis.
But shocked relatives found his body had been replaced by a stranger's.
Mr Moon - who was afraid of cremation- had been accidentally incinerated.
The family are now suing Brown Mortuary Service for the upsetting blunder.