DENVER, Colo. — The husband and wife owners of the Return to Nature Funeral Home have entered a request to change their pleas for federal charges against them.
The documents show attorneys for Jon and Carie Hallford filed the requests on Thursday and asked the court to vacate the trial date set for Oct.15.
The couple was arrested in April by FBI agents after being indicted by a grand jury on felony wire fraud charges. According to the federal court documents at the time, the two-faced 13 federal charges for Wire Fraud and Aiding and Abetting and 2 federal charges for Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud.
News5 previously reported that victim's families were notified about a federal plea deal extended to the couple last month, outlining a possible 15-year prison sentence.
They each face 260 state counts in the criminal case brought by the 4th Judicial District Attorney's Office. The charges include abuse of a corpse, money laundering, theft, and forgery. A plea deal in that caseis still on the table.
The Hallfords were originally arrested in Oklahoma in November of 2023 at a house belonging to Jon's parents, according to investigators. Investigators said they discovered around 190 decomposing bodies inside the couple's funeral home in Penrose in October.
KOAA News5 has a full timeline of the developing events of the Return to Nature Funeral Home. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was the lead on the demolition.
Related:
Investigation into 115 bodies continues at Return to Nature Funeral Home in Penrose
State records: Penrose funeral home owner attempted to conceal improperly stored remains
Coroner: Some remains in Return to Nature Funeral Home investigation were 'several years old'
Class action lawsuit filed against Return to Nature where 189 remains were discovered
'I want to help,' one woman encourages Return to Nature Funeral Home victims, to reach out to her for support‘
I'm losing him all over again’: Widow fears husband a victim in funeral home investigation
Authorities in Oklahoma arrest owners of Return to Nature Funeral Home
Owners of Return to Nature Funeral Home appear in El Paso County Court
Judge agrees to unseal arrest papers for one of the Penrose funeral home owners
Judge reduces bond for funeral home owner accused of improperly storing 190 bodies
Return to Nature Funeral Home owner bonds out of El Paso County Jail Tuesday
Co-owner of Penrose funeral home released on bail Monday night, families react
One of the owners of the Return to Nature Funeral in court today
Jury trial expected for Return to Nature funeral home owners, arraignment hearing postponed
Penrose funeral home owners facing federal charges, accused of misusing COVID relief money
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