What happened at Colorado's Return to Nature Funeral Home? Owner accused of concealing information as investigation is underway

Return to Nature, a "green" funeral home in Colorado, is under investigation as cops found 115 decaying bodies at their storage facility after they responded to a report of a suspicious incident on Tuesday, October 3, 2023. The investigators returned the next day with a search warrant and found the bodies "improperly stored" creating a "hazardous scene."

On Friday Fremont County Sheriff Allen Cooper gave a careful statement so as to not "victimize" the families anymore, stating that the air in the facility where the bodies were stored was "horrific."

Prioritizing the identification, Sheriff Cooper remarked:

"Our priority and our focus is on the families. We are committed to finding answers for the families as quickly as possible."

As per the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) website, a state suspension letter by the Colorado Office of Funeral Home and Crematory Registration dated October 5, was sent to Return to Nature owner, Jon Hallford. The letter stated that Hallford tried to conceal the corpses by claiming he was doing taxidermy at the facility.

While it stated that Hallford acknowledged he had a problem at the said facility, there was no mention of the taxidermy operation or the improper storage of remains. Furthermore, the registration for the Funeral Home had expired in November 2022.

A separate document on the DORA website showed Hallford allegedly refusing a permit to access his property for an investigation, even though it is required under the law.

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Return to Nature charged $1,895 for a "natural burial," not counting the casket and cemetery space cost

The facility was a 2,500-foot building that resembled the appearance of a one-story home.

Return to Nature was known to perform burials without using chemicals or metal caskets and instead using biodegradable caskets, shrouds, or “nothing at all.” While it is legal to perform green burials under Colorado law, the state requires that anybody not buried within 24 hours needs to be properly refrigerated.

Fremont County Coroner Randy Keller explained that the identification could take several months and would require taking fingerprints, finding medical or dental records, and DNA testing. Families would be informed as soon as identification was completed. He requested that everyone who has used the funeral home services get in touch with the police.

Mary Simons hired Return to Nature Funeral Home to cremate her husband, Darrell Simons, who had lung cancer and died of pneumonia in August. The 47-year-old explained that her late husband's ashes had still not arrived.

Expressing her fears over finding that her husband was inside the building, she added:

"Suddenly it’s like ‘oh my God’, I’ve lost him all over again. It’s like the grieving process is starting all over again."

Return to Nature Funeral Home offered a cremation service till July 2023.

Police initially requested aid from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). FBI Public Affairs Specialist, Vikki Migoya, explained that it is unclear whether any crime was committed.

Colorado Governor, Jared Polis, issued a local disaster emergency to ensure all state resources are available for the investigations.

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No one has been arrested in connection with the Return to Nature investigation. The funeral home has not released any comments at the time of writing this article.