EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. — Jon Hallford, one of the owners of the Return to Nature Funeral Home, was in an El Paso County courtroom just after 1:30 p.m. on Thursday.
He and his wife, Carie Hallford, both face more than 250 felony counts, including abuse of a corpse, money laundering, forgery, and theft. The couple is accused of improperly storing 190 bodies inside the Return to Nature funeral home in Penrose.
A judge reduced bonds for both Jon and Carie Hallford from $2 million to $100,000 at previous court appearances. Jon Hallford bonded out of jail in late January.
Jon Hallford appeared emotionless next to his attorney before the audience filled with many of the family members of those found inside the funeral home.
The prosecution team held this preliminary hearing to bind over money laundering charges that Jon Hallford faces related to the case. The defense said the specific charges should not be considered due to the nature of the way the money was spent.
The only witness the prosecution called to the stand was Federal Bureau of Investigation Agent Andrew Cohen, who was one of the special agents assigned to the case and relaid his involvement in the courtroom.
Agent Cohen described the Return to Nature Funeral Home at 31 Werner Road in Penrose as being kept at 70°F and when examining the building, three make-shift cooling devices were made, but were not working. Cohen testified some bodies were wrapped in plastic, some bodies exposed, and a layer of human decomposition fluids and insects covered the floors.
According to Cohen, the oldest body in the building was listed as dying on September 15, 2019, and the most recent body as of August 22, 2023.
Agent Cohen said he examined business bank accounts in the Hallford's name and showed personal expenses for travel, entertainment, bars, restaurants, and cryptocurrency investment. Cohen said there was a charge for a $1,500 dinner in Las Vegas in February 2022.
After a short recess, Judge William Moller agreed with the prosecution that the willful actions of Jon Hallford during these purchases, and how they could be related to alleged contracts of services not delivered to families as a result of the excess of bodies. Judge Moller bound four charges of money laundering to Hallford as he will make another court appearance on March 21, 2024.
Carie Hallford is set to appear in court on the same day as Jon Hallford in March for their arraignments after her first preliminary hearing in January.
Following today's hearing the arrest affidavit by FBI Agent Andrew Cohen and reviewed by Colorado Bureau of Investigation Agent Christopher Adams was unsealed by the courts.
The arrest papers detail the nature of the bodies found, including that instead of cremating or burying bodies as reported, approximately 189 bodies were left to rot at room temperature. The document said the Hallfords received over $150,000 for services that were falsely promised.
The arrest affidavit also said in 2020 the Fremont County Coroner brought suspicions to the Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) about poor treatment of human bodies and improper refrigeration inside the funeral home. The document said the Fremont County Coroner stated DORA never replied.
The document concludes the Hallfords profited from the scheme and spent the unlawfully obtained proceeds on other items, like two vehicles.
WARNING: Many of the details in the affidavit are graphic, should you like to read it for yourself you can do so here. The arrest affidavit of Jon Hallford.
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