Police have found at least 115 rotting corpses at a funeral home after locals complained of a "putrid dead animal smell".
The Return to Nature Funeral Home in Colorado, US is now under investigation after being accused of improperly storing human remains. The centre offers "green burials", which cost around £1,548 to have remains dealt with in a "natural" way, reports the Daily Mail.
Officers raided the funeral home on Tuesday night (October 3) after reports of suspicious activity. They then returned to the Colorado Springs premises the next day, when they made the harrowing discovery.
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Fremont County Sheriff Allen Cooper said the force is coordinating with other agencies as part of their investigation and said it is currently "unclear" whether a crime had been committed. "There have been a lot of questions and concerns expressed by the community, especially those families who entrusted their loved ones to this funeral home," Sheriff Cooper said.
"Our priority and our focus is on the families. We are committed to finding answers for the families as quickly as possible."
Sheriff Cooper also confirmed a local disaster emergency has been declared and said the "very very lengthy" probe could last several months. Authorities are now working to identify the deceased and inform the families affected as quickly as possible. Families who have used the home have been urged to get in touch with the sheriff's office.
Officers said they have been in touch with funeral home operators who are cooperating with their investigation. No arrests have been made yet.
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Joyce Pavetti, 73, who lives near the funeral home, said she kept noticing an unpleasant smell wafting through the neighbourhood over the last few weeks. "We just assumed it was a dead animal," she said.
Return to Nature charges $1,895 (£1,548.50) for a "natural burial". According to its website, this doesn't include the cost of a casket or even space in a cemetery. The company previously offered cremation services for $1,290 (£1054.12) apiece, which also covered the cost of a tree planted in Colorado National Forest – but it stopped these in July of this year.
Other add-ons include a four-hour window for families to say goodbye to their loved ones, which costs $485 (£396.32). A final hour-long private visit is $285 (£232.89).
A green burial sees bodies laid to rest without being embalmed. The funeral home uses biodegradable caskets or shrouds to cover the remains, or nothing at all. "No embalming fluids, no concrete vaults. As natural as possible," it says on its website.
The Daily Star has contacted Return to Nature for comment.
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