The owner of a Colorado funeral home is set to be sentenced on Friday after pleading guilty to nearly 200 counts of corpse abuse, involving the storage of 189 decomposing bodies and the distribution of fake ashes to grieving families. Jon Hallford, who operated Return to Nature Funeral Home in Colorado Springs with his then-wife Carie, faces between 30 and 50 years in prison for these charges, while Carie Hallford is scheduled for sentencing on April 24, facing 25 to 35 years.
Gruesome Discovery and Investigation
From 2019 to 2023, the Hallfords stored the bodies in a building in Penrose, a small town south of Colorado Springs. The grim discovery was made in 2023 when investigators responded to reports of a foul odor emanating from the property. Inside, they found bodies scattered throughout the building, some stacked on top of each other, with swarms of insects and decomposition fluid covering the floors. The remains, which included adults, infants, and fetuses, were kept at room temperature, exacerbating the decay.
Impact on Families and Identification Efforts
Over several months, authorities used fingerprints, DNA, and other forensic methods to identify the bodies. Many families had been given what they believed were the ashes of their loved ones, only to later discover they were actually dry concrete. This revelation has caused immense emotional distress, with some families reporting that it undid their grieving processes, led to nightmares, and instilled feelings of guilt for failing their relatives.
Federal Fraud Charges and Lavish Spending
In addition to the corpse abuse charges, the Hallfords pleaded guilty to federal fraud charges after prosecutors alleged they defrauded the government of nearly $900,000 in pandemic-era small business aid. Jon Hallford was sentenced to 20 years in prison in that case, where he expressed remorse, stating he had intended to make a positive impact but let things spiral out of control. Carie Hallford's federal sentencing is scheduled for March 16.
Court documents reveal that during the years they were hiding bodies, the Hallfords engaged in extravagant spending. They purchased a GMC Yukon and an Infiniti worth over $120,000 combined, invested $31,000 in cryptocurrency, bought luxury items from high-end stores like Gucci and Tiffany & Co., and underwent laser body sculpting procedures.
Notable Case and Regulatory Changes
One of the recovered bodies was identified as a former Army sergeant first class, initially thought to have been buried at a veterans' cemetery. FBI agent Andrew Cohen reported that when the casket was exhumed, it contained the remains of a person of a different gender. The veteran was later given a proper funeral with full military honors at Pikes Peak National Cemetery.
The scandal has prompted significant changes to Colorado's previously lax funeral home regulations. Public records and interviews indicate that the Hallfords had a history of financial troubles, including missed tax payments, eviction from a property, and lawsuits for unpaid bills. In a rare move, state District Judge Eric Bentley rejected earlier plea agreements that would have imposed up to 20 years in prison, following objections from family members of the deceased who deemed the terms too lenient.
Attorneys for the Hallfords did not respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press, leaving many questions unanswered as the sentencing approaches.
