DENVER, Colorado – A former funeral home owner in the Denver suburb of Littleton is facing an arrest warrant after authorities discovered a deceased woman’s body in a hearse at a house where at least 30 sets of cremated remains were also found, during a court-ordered eviction. The funeral home had been closed since September 2022, and the owner, Miles Harford, 33, is being investigated for his handling of the deceased and their remains.
Police stated that Harford had experienced financial difficulties in his business, which led to incomplete cremations and the provision of incorrect ashes to families. During the eviction, temporary urns were found in the crawl space of the house and in a moving truck parked outside. Additionally, a deceased woman’s body was discovered in a hearse under blankets. Harford claimed she passed away in August 2022 and offered cooperation with investigators.
The recovered cremains are linked to individuals who passed away between 2012 and 2021. This incident is the latest in a series of disturbing cases involving mishandled bodies by funeral home operators in Colorado, a state with weak oversight of the funeral industry. Another married couple in Colorado Springs is awaiting trial for abandoning nearly 200 bodies inside a bug-infested facility and providing fake ashes to family members of the deceased.
Harford is expected to face charges for the abuse of a corpse, forgery of the death certificate, and theft of money paid for the cremation. The investigation is ongoing, and more charges may be filed. The families affected by this horrifying discovery are reeling from the news, as many believed they had the complete remains of their loved ones.
The incident shines a light on the lack of routine inspections of funeral homes and qualification requirements for operators in Colorado, and the devastating impact it has on the families of the deceased. It remains unclear how these oversight gaps will be addressed to prevent similar mishandlings in the future. Additionally, the financial struggles faced by funeral home operators may also be contributing to these distressing situations, highlighting a need for better support and resources within the industry.