In a shocking turn of events, the owners of a Colorado funeral home where 190 decaying bodies were discovered last year have been indicted on federal charges. According to recently unsealed court documents, Jon and Carie Hallford stand accused of misspending nearly $900,000 in pandemic relief funds on personal luxuries, including vacations, cosmetic surgery, jewelry, and more.

The indictment not only reinforces the allegations made by state prosecutors but also reveals even more disturbing details. It alleges that the Hallfords gave grieving families dry concrete instead of the cremated ashes they were promised. Furthermore, the couple reportedly buried the wrong body on two separate occasions. Moreover, it is claimed that they collected over $130,000 from families for cremation and burial services that were never provided.

With these new federal charges, the Hallfords now face a total of 15 charges brought by a grand jury. These charges are in addition to the already existing 200 criminal counts pending against them in Colorado state court. The charges include corpse abuse, money laundering, theft, and forgery. If convicted, the couple could face up to 20 years in prison and fines amounting to $250,000.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Tim Neff argued that the Hallfords were a flight risk, highlighting their alleged attempt to flee to Oklahoma last October when the decaying bodies were initially discovered. The couple was arrested on state charges on November 8. The judge has yet to decide whether to release them pending trial, setting an arraignment hearing for Thursday.

The revelation of these new charges and accusations has brought more anguish to the families who entrusted their loved ones to the funeral home. Tanya Wilson, who had engaged Return to Nature to cremate her mother's remains, expressed her distress over the situation. She had spread the ashes with her family in Hawaii, only to later discover that they were not her mother's, as her mother's body was among the 190 decaying bodies found by authorities.

It is worth noting that public records indicate that the Hallfords were already struggling with debt even before these recent developments. They faced evictions and lawsuits for unpaid cremations while maintaining a lavish lifestyle. The indictment alleges that the couple used $882,300 of pandemic relief funds for personal expenses, including purchasing a vehicle, dinners, tuition for their child, and even cryptocurrency.

Previous court documents revealed additional details about the couple's spending habits, with purchases such as a GMC Yukon and an Infiniti worth over $120,000. This amount could have covered the costs of cremation twice over for all the bodies found in their funeral home's facility last October, according to FBI Agent Andrew Cohen's testimony.

The Hallfords also took trips to California, Florida, and Las Vegas, and indulged in luxury shopping at retailers like Gucci and Tiffany & Co. Additionally, they spent $31,000 in cryptocurrency and even paid for laser body sculpting. The couple has not entered pleas to the state's abuse of corpse charges as of yet.

The Hallfords' actions have left a trail of unpaid bills, aggrieved landlords, and unresolved business disputes in their wake. They allegedly claimed to a former landlord that they would settle their rent once they were paid for work they had done with the Federal Emergency Management Agency during the pandemic—a claim that is now under scrutiny. The couple's business website even displayed logos for FEMA and the Department of Defense.

Furthermore, it has been revealed that the funeral home had neglected to pay over $5,000 in property taxes in 2022 and was hit with a $21,000 judgment last year for failing to pay for numerous cremations.

This saga of alleged lies, money laundering, forgery, and manipulation has left hundreds of grieving family members devastated. The discovery of the 190 decaying bodies in a bug-infested storage building in Penrose, Colorado, uncovered a troubling pattern of fake ashes and fabricated cremation records. Families entrusted their loved ones to the funeral home only to later find out that the received ashes were not their relatives' remains. Some of the remains had been left unattended since 2019.

Although concerns about the funeral home's improper body storage were raised as far back as 2020, regulators failed to follow up, allowing the number of bodies to reach nearly 200 over the course of three years.

As the legal proceedings move forward, families affected by the Hallfords' alleged misconduct continue to grapple with the pain and betrayal caused by these unthinkable actions.