Colorado families entrusted a local funeral home to care for their loved ones after they died, but that trust was misplaced. The Return to Nature Funeral Home based in Colorado Springs claimed to be a place for environmentally friendly burials, but it appears the company wasn't performing burials as advertised. Investigators allegedly found human remains improperly stored at the company's Penrose facility.
The Fremont County Sheriff's Office announced Tuesday that investigators removed at least 189 human bodies from the facility. The bodies are now in the care of the El Paso County Coroner's Office. Police are working with families to coordinate DNA samples to help identify the remains.
The situation is heartbreaking for many families who thought Return to Nature was there to help them in their time of mourning.
More from CafeMom: Teen Found Burned to Death in Bonfire During Arizona Graduation Trip
Sheriff's deputies served the funeral home with a search warrant on October 4.
After receiving a suspicious tip about improperly stored remains, deputies visited the facility and found at least 115 human remains inside the building, ABC News reported. New reports however, indicate the number is more than 189.
James Glidewell works at a property behind the funeral home and told the Colorado Springs Gazette he thought it was abandoned until two vehicles showed up in June. He'd noticed a foul odor for the last month.
"I'd randomly smell it, but I didn't think anything of it. I thought it was just roadkill or something like that," he explained. "Every time you'd drive by here, you'd smell it."
Investigators reportedly need DNA samples to identify the remains.
In a press conference on October 6, Fremont County Sheriff Allen Cooper said the facility was in deplorable condition, and the bodies inside were in varying states of decomposition. He said a paramedic on the scene broke out in a rash while working in the building.
"Without providing too much detail to avoid further victimizing these families, the area of the funeral home where the bodies were improperly stored was horrific," Cooper said.
The facility was supposed to be performing green burials.
Cooper did not indicate what Return to Nature did to the bodies, but it did not appear the funeral home was following the guidelines of green burial.
The company's website explains green burial this way:
“Green Burial is a natural way of caring for your loved one with minimal environmental impact. Green Burial aids in the conservation of natural resources, reduction of carbon emissions and the preservation of habitat, WITHOUT the use of harsh embalming chemicals, metallic, plastic or unnatural items. You can still view your loved one who is NOT embalmed. Embalming is NOT a law. In the state of Colorado within 24 hours the body must be either embalmed or placed in a regulated temperature controlled environment, meaning under refrigeration, dry ice, etc.”
According to reports, funeral homes aren't closely monitored in Colorado.
The Associated Press reported that Return to Nature and its owners, Jon and Carie Hallford, were plagued with financial issues. But because the funeral industry is reportedly not firmly regulated, no one seemed to notice.
The Halfords allegedly didn't pay taxes and ended up evicted from one property, and a crematory stopped doing business with them due to unpaid bills, according to AP. The company's registration allegedly expired in November, but no one reportedly checked on the business afterward.
Chris Farmer, attorney for the National Funeral Directors Association, said better regulatory processes could have helped victims of the alleged mishandling of remains.
"You catch it at six or eight bodies and not at 115," Farmer told AP.
More from CafeMom: Couple Charged After Allegedly Stealing & Selling Human Remains From Morgue
Now, families are desperately hoping to find their loved ones' remains.
Stephanie Ford, who lost a loved one last year, wrote on Facebook, "As if losing Wes in April wasn't bad enough, now horrific local news has come out about Return to Nature, the funeral home we used to take care of Wes and his wish to be cremated. The death certificate was falsified and the 'ashes' we received are not ashes at all, most likely cement."
Anna Davisson, a former client of Return to Nature, asked Facebook users to stop victim shaming.
"Nobody would purposely put their loved one in this situation. Most likely people entrusted their loved ones with them because they were recommended to them by someone they know; they did a search and saw many positive reviews: and/or they had dealt with this organization in the past," she wrote.
The case is under investigation, but no one has been charged thus far.
