Colorado Funeral Home Owner Gets Convicted for Fake Ashes

(MENAFN) A Colorado funeral home owner received a 40-year prison sentence after authorities discovered 191 decomposing bodies stored for years, with some families receiving fake ashes, according to reports.

Jon Hallford, co-owner of Return to Nature Funeral Home in Penrose, south of Colorado Springs, committed the crimes between 2019 and 2023. Investigators found bodies stacked inside the building, some piled atop each other, with fluids and insects covering the floors. The remains included adults, infants, and fetuses, all kept at room temperature.

Judge Eric Bentley described Hallford’s actions as causing “unspeakable and incomprehensible” harm and said the case challenged the belief that people are “basically good at the core.”

Families testified that they experienced nightmares after learning their loved ones had been left to decay and called Hallford a “monster,” urging the maximum 50-year sentence. “I’m a daughter whose mother was treated like yesterday’s trash,” said one victim, Kelly Mackeen, whose mother’s remains were among those mishandled.

Hallford admitted in court that his actions would “echo for a generation” and apologized, acknowledging he failed to intervene despite multiple opportunities. Prosecutors said greed motivated the crimes, noting that while families were charged over $1,200 each, Hallford and his wife, Carie, spent lavishly on luxury cars, cryptocurrency, high-end goods, and cosmetic procedures.

MENAFN07022026000045017640ID1110708559