Colorado couple blew cash into cars and cryptocurrencies, leaving 189 bodies to rot

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by olivia land

A Colorado couple raised money from hundreds of families for an “eco-friendly” funeral and spent the money on cars, cryptocurrency and designer jewelry, but the body was left unattended, according to newly released court documents. The facility was old and rotten.

John and Carrie Hallford call their Return to Nature funeral home business a “return to traditional burial methods,” charging biodegradable burials and cremations for up to $1,895, according to documents. claimed to provide it.

But the bombshell records show that the couple did not follow through on their promise to bury their clients' loved ones with dignity, instead spending their cash on big-ticket items such as a $92,566 GMC Yukon XL and a $28,336 Infiniti SUV. It was revealed.

From 2019 to 2023, the couple also splurged on cryptocurrencies, luxury trips to Las Vegas and California, and four-figure splurges at Tiffany & Co. and Gucci.

Meanwhile, the 189 bodies they vowed to dispose of were “unrefrigerated in rooms infested with insects and rotting fluids,” the affidavit states.

Some of the remains were stacked or kept together in body bags wrapped in sheets and tied with duct tape.

In some cases, families are said to have been given bags of mixed concrete in place of their loved one's ashes.

When authorities finally executed a search warrant at the Penrose facility last fall, the floor of the storage area was so slippery with human decomposing fluids that it posed a danger to authorities trying to remove the bodies, the affidavit said. It is written.

The investigation found that although the Hallfords had done their job properly in burying the body, they were grossly negligent.

At some point during the investigation, authorities discovered that Return to Nature had buried a woman's body in the grave of an honorably discharged male veteran at Pikes Peak National Cemetery.

The remains, which were supposed to be sent to a military grave, were actually left at the coroner's office – apparently without the knowledge of his loved ones.

The latest disturbing revelations have come to light as a judge rules that the case against John Hallford can proceed to trial, ABC 7 reports.

The court handed down a similar sentence against Carey last month, the paper said.

Both men are scheduled to be arraigned on March 21 on numerous charges, including abuse of a corpse, forgery and money laundering in connection with the purchase.

John Hallford was released on $100,000 bail in January, but Carrie Hallford remains in custody in lieu of $100,000 bail.

ABC 7 reported that several of the alleged victims' loved ones were in court Thursday.

“It's absolutely despicable to prey on people at the weakest, most vulnerable time in their lives,” Danica Romero said. Her sister Samantha died suddenly in December 2019 and was scheduled to be cremated by Return to Nature.

“I don't know what kind of person would do something like that. Someone without a soul… My sister didn't deserve that. None of the family members involved deserve this,” she lamented.