Photo: Muskogee County Sheriff's Office
A Colorado couple accused of abandoning nearly 200 bodies at their "green" funeral home allegedly used payments meant for cremation and burial services on lavish purchases, according to Fox News. Jon and Carie Hallford are facing a slew of charges after authorities found 190 decomposing bodies inside their business' storage facility in Penrose back in October.
FBI Agent Andrew Cohen testified Thursday (February 8) in a courtroom that the Hallfords spent over $120,000 from the families of the deceased on an Infiniti, cryptocurrency, a $1,500 dinner in Las Vegas, and other personal items. Cohen claims that's enough money to cover the cremation costs of the bodies twice over.
The couple is also accused of using the money to buy a GMC Yukon, but Jon Hallford's lawyer, Adam Steigerwald, said his client funded the purchase with a pandemic-era Small Business Administration. Cohen countered by alleging Jon obtained the loan fraudulently by lying about being behind on child support payments.
Reporters said the Thursday hearing was to determine if Jon Hallford would face trial for money laundering charges. His attorney argued the prosecution didn't provide sufficient evidence his client committed the crimes. Carie Hallford already had her hearing and will face trial.
During Carie's hearing, prosecutors presented text messages suggesting the couple tried covering up their financial woes by leaving the bodies behind at the "maggot-infested" Penrose facility. Jon allegedly suggested dumping the bodies in a hole or setting them on fire to avoid getting caught in text messages dating back to 2020, according to prosecutors.
The Hallfords were arrested in Oklahoma in November and now face hundreds of charges, including 190 counts of abuse of a corpse, five counts of theft, four counts of money laundering, and more than 50 counts of forgery.
According to Fox News, Jon Hallford bonded out of jail in January, and Carie Hallford remains in custody.