Former funeral home owners in Colorado plead guilty to nearly 200 charges after improperly storing bodies

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) – The former owners of a Colorado funeral home, after taking a federal plea deal, reached a local plea deal after nearly 200 bodies were found improperly stored.

The case gained national attention after investigators raided Back to Nature Funeral Home in Penrose in October 2023. The grisly discovery at the funeral prompted families to call for justice over how their loved ones’ remains were treated. The 4th Courthouse Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office announced that there were 267 victims in the case.

Jon and Carrie Hallford pleaded guilty to the abuse of nearly 200 corpses. As part of the plea agreement, money laundering and theft charges were dropped. In court, Jon admitted that he did not properly dispose of or bury the remains. On the state-level charges alone, Jon faces up to 20 years in prison and Carrie faces up to 15 years in prison.

Last month, couple pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy wire fraud at the federal level. Sentencing in the federal case has been set for a later date.

This is a developing story and KKTV 11 News will provide more in-depth coverage throughout the day.

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