Owners of Colorado Funeral Home Where 190 Bodies Were Found to Appear in Court

The owners misled their clients into believing that the remains of their loved ones would be buried or cremated, prosecutors said.

A hearse and debris at the rear of the Return to Nature Funeral Home in Penrose, Colo., on Oct. 5, 2023. Jerilee Bennett/The Gazette via AP

A couple who owned a Colorado funeral home where 190 decaying bodies were discovered last year is expected to appear in state court for a plea hearing on Nov. 8 after being charged with hundreds of counts of corpse abuse.

Jon Hallford, 44, and Carie Hallford, 47, owners of the Return to Nature Funeral Home in Penrose, Colorado, each face 190 counts of corpse abuse, along with charges of theft, money laundering, and forgery, according to court documents.