Owners of Penrose Funeral Home Arrested and Charged with Multiple Felonies

Return to Nature Funeral Home in Penrose. (Screencap from CBS News.com)

Victims of Jon and Carie Hallford, the owners of the Penrose funeral home where nearly 200 decomposing bodies were discovered, were notified today that arrests have been made.

Jon Hallford and Carie Hallford, owners of the Return to Nature Funeral Home in Penrose, were arrested in Wagoner, Oklahoma on suspicion of committing the crimes of Abuse of a Corpse, C.R.S. 18-13-101, Class 6 Felony; Theft,18-4-401, Class 4 Felony; Money Laundering,18-5-309, Class 3 Felony; and Forgery,18-5-102, Class 5 Felony.

RELATED: 150 Bodies From Penrose Funeral Home Have Been Identified

On October 4th, nearly 200 bodies were found to be improperly stored within the Return to Nature Penrose location. The arrests relate to the investigation, conducted by the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, and the FBI, into the operation of the Return to Nature Funeral Home, between September 2019 and September 2023. 

The 4th Judicial District Attorney’s office will review the investigation and file the appropriate charges in El Paso County District Court. District Attorney Michael J. Allen, along with representatives from agencies including the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, the Fremont County Coroner’s Office, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation will hold a press conference today, Nov. 8th, at 10:30 am.

You can watch the press conference live facebook.com/4thjudicialda.

The FBI also noted that all identified victims will be granted access to a web page, hosted by the 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, which will contain case information as they are able to share it.

Terry West
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