A Maryland woman has been found guilty in the death of her mother, who was dismembered and cooked on a charcoal grill.

WTOP News reports that on Friday, Candace Craig, 46, was found guilty of first and second-degree murder by a Prince George’s County, Maryland jury.

It took the jury over an hour to find 71-year-old Margaret Craig’s caregiver and daughter guilty of murder.

As CrimeOnline previously reported, according to WUSA, Salia Hardy told police that her mother, Candace Craig, attacked Margaret Craig on May 23, 2023, during an argument over fraudulent credit card charges. Margaret Craig reportedly blamed Hardy, her granddaughter, for the charges and threatened to contact authorities.

Hardy claimed she found her grandmother’s body in a blue bin at the Hyattsville home the following day.

Authorities alleged that the mother and daughter dismembered Margaret Craig with a chainsaw and burned her remains on a charcoal grill.

On Friday, officers conducted a welfare check after a neighbor said they had not seen Margaret Craig in several days. A witness claimed they saw Hardy and Candace Craig burning human remains on May 27 after spotting a brush fire behind their home. The witness called 911 at the time, but responding crews did not locate a fire at that time, according to WUSA.

Despite the mother and daughter’s alleged attempts to conceal Margaret Craig’s body, officers noticed the smell of decomposition in the basement. WUSA reported that officers spotted blood near three trash bags that contained brain matter and dismembered body parts.

Human remains were reportedly found on a chainsaw that was taken from the home. Detectives also located cleaning materials, cutting utensils, and additional blood in the basement, WUSA reported.

Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy told reporters that this was a difficult case due to its unique nature.

“We consider [Margaret] Craig to be a special victim who was killed by her own daughter,” Braveboy said after the conviction. “Killed, dismembered, her body burned, her body grilled—it was insulting for this 71-year-old woman who was a hardworking person collecting Social Security and a pension. She was someone who worked hard all her life. She was providing for her grown daughter who was living with her, her grandchildren, and she even allowed her daughter’s boyfriend to live in the home,”as reported by wusa 9

Disturbing images were submitted by prosecutors, showcasing graphic depictions of grilled body parts, as they argued that her death stemmed from financial misconduct and fraudulent behavior, according to WTOP News.

Braveboy said, “She took very deliberate, specific steps in deciding how she wanted to go about grilling her mother—using seasoning to mask the smell.”

Medical examiners testified that Margaret Craig died “at the hands of someone.”

During the trial, issues were raised by the defense attorneys representing Candace Craig, who argued that not enough DNA tests were conducted. A total of 10 items were tested, but no DNA tests were done on the car in the home’s driveway.

There was DNA evidence from an unidentified male, which the defense attorneys felt may have pointed to Margaret Craig’s actual killer.

In their closing arguments, the prosecutors highlighted various pieces of evidence, such as bins and body parts associated with Margaret Craig that were discovered in a bag.

Ultimately, the jury found Candace Craig guilty and included a conviction on charges of tampering with evidence and the improper disposal of her mother’s remains.

The children and family members who witnessed the gruesome violence committed by Candace Craig are of great concern to Braveboy.

“You have to live with this. You have three young girls who now know that their mother killed their grandmother, dismembered her body, tried to set her on fire, and then tried to blame them,” Braveboy said.

“I can’t even imagine the therapy, the support, everything that they’re going to need to grow into strong young women. This—it’s almost unbelievable, but it happened. It happened.”

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[Feature Photo: Margaret and Candace Craig/Handout]