Afuneral hometrusted by grieving families hid a horrifying secret - with nearly 200 bodies left to rot while loved ones were handed fake ashes. In October 2023, officials in Penrose,Colorado, began receiving complaints of an “abhorrent” smell coming from a building linked to Return to Nature Funeral Home.
The business, run by married couple Jon and Carie Hallford, marketed itself as an affordable, eco-friendly alternative, specialising in “green burials” that avoided the use ofembalmingchemicals. While Carie was the face of the business, guiding clients and covering paperwork, Jon was more behind the scenes and managed the technical side of the business. He described himself as a “third-generation funeral home director” with 19 years of experience. Carie, meanwhile, was recalled by clients as compassionate and warm, promising dignified care.
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Cremations started at $1,200 (£889) and were “outsourced” to a local crematory. The Hallfords would then give the ashes to loved ones, reportsThe Mirror. It appeared that running a funeral business was successful, as the Hallfords drove luxury cars, went on expensive holidays and shopped in designer stores.
Return to Nature had an office where the Hallfords met with families, and a nearby 2,500-square-foot building that was run-down and appeared to be used for storage. After reports of a terrible smell were made in October 2023, police visited the building. At the time, in Colorado, there were no legal requirements for funeral directors to be licensed or even trained, so there had never been a routine inspection.
Upon speaking to Jon about the stench, he said it was connected to histaxidermyhobby. Officers were suspicious of liquid that appeared to be seeping under the door. They got a search warrant and returned the next day.
With the couple nowhere to be seen, police discovered bodies stacked up on top of each other in nearly a dozen rooms. The piles were so high they blocked doorways. Some had been there a few months, while others had been there since 2019.
In total, there were 189 bodies, with many inbody bags, but others just wrapped in sheets. Adults, children and foetuses were in the advanced stages of decomposition due to the lack of refrigeration. The floor was covered in bodily fluids, and the building was infested with insects andmaggots. Buckets were scattered around to catch leaking fluids.
Also found inside the building was a sack of concrete mix, which was what Carie and Jon had given families in urns, pretending it was the ashes of their cremated loved ones. Before the discovery, some families had thought the ashes felt heavier than they should or were a strange texture. Some even contained foreign objects like bolts.
Source: Daily Express :: World Feed
