Colorado, USA — A Colorado funeral residence proprietor accused of hiding practically 190 decomposing our bodies and defrauding the U.S. authorities of virtually $900,000 is anticipated to plead responsible in federal courtroom, in line with courtroom paperwork filed Tuesday.
Carie Hallford, who operated Return to Nature Funeral House alongside her husband, Jon Hallford, allegedly scammed the federal Small Enterprise Administration out of pandemic reduction funds and cheated grieving households by taking funds for cremations that had been by no means carried out.
As an alternative of offering the companies, prosecutors say the couple used the cash on luxurious automobiles, cryptocurrency, and costly items from manufacturers like Gucci — whereas conserving our bodies in a room-temperature constructing and sending pretend ashes to households.
Jon Hallford already pleaded responsible to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and was sentenced final month to twenty years in jail. Carie Hallford, who beforehand pleaded not responsible, is now scheduled to alter her plea in early August, a spokesperson for the U.S. Legal professional’s Workplace in Colorado confirmed.
Her lawyer, Robert Charles Melihercik, declined to touch upon the event.
HORRIFIC DISCOVERY
The scandal got here to mild in 2023, when authorities searched the Penrose, Colorado facility — about two hours south of Denver — and found 191 our bodies piled on high of one another, surrounded by bugs and bodily fluids overlaying the ground.
Many households had been devastated to be taught their family members’ stays had been left to decay for years, some since 2019, whereas they got pretend ashes.
In a separate state case, each Jon and Carie Hallford face 191 counts of abusing a corpse, in addition to allegations of burying the fallacious our bodies in not less than two cases.
Federal prosecutors say the couple’s fraud and neglect stretched over 4 years, stunning the neighborhood and leaving dozens of households traumatised.
Carie Hallford is anticipated to enter her responsible plea in federal courtroom in early August.
