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Funeral home owner where 115 decaying bodies found tried to conceal improper storage

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:14:57 GMT

CAÑON CITY, Colo. (AP) — The owner of a Colorado funeral home where 115 decaying bodies were found after neighbors reported nauseating smells tried to conceal the improper storage of corpses and claimed he was doing animal taxidermy at the facility, according to a suspension letter sent to him by state regulators.The Return to Nature Funeral Home facility in the small town of Penrose had been unregistered with the state for 10 months on Wednesday when owner Jon Hallford spoke by phone with a state regulator.A day earlier, an “abhorrent smell” from the facility was reported, launched an investigation Ghost town discovered on Colorado’s Western Slope Hallford acknowledged that he had a “problem” at the property, though the Colorado Office of Funeral Home and Crematory Registration document obtained by The Associated Press didn't explain what Hallford meant with his taxidermy claim or how he tried to conceal improper storage of human remains.Text messages and phone calls were not ans...

100 gallons of spilled diesel fuel closes I-76 ramp to Sheridan Boulevard

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:14:57 GMT

Editor's note: This story has been updated to clarify the location of the spill.DENVER (KDVR) -- A ramp on Interstate 76 in Jefferson County is closed due to a fuel tank that spilled approximately 100 gallons of diesel fuel.The off-ramp from eastbound I-76 to Sheridan Boulevard closed due to a ruptured fuel tank that caused the spill, Colorado State Patrol in Golden tweeted at 10:42 a.m. Friday. At least 115 bodies found at ‘green’ southern Colorado funeral home Emergency crews are at the scene. As of 10:53 a.m., there's no word on how long this cleanup will take.This is a developing story. FOX31 will update this post when more information is available.

Suspect with alleged stolen license plate on truck taken into custody after police pursuit ends in NW Miami-Dade

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:14:57 GMT

After a brief pursuit Friday afternoon, police took into custody a suspect with a truck that had an allegedly stolen license plate. According to the Broward Sheriff’s Office, deputies were following the vehicle, a gray Ford pickup, in Lauderhill because its tag did not match the vehicle. Deputies continued to follow the truck as it headed towards Miami Gardens and into the area of Opa-locka.At one point, Opa-locka Police were also following the vehicle and were going to conduct a traffic stop, but a supervisors told officers to return to their regular posts. A BSO helicopter continued to follow the truck. The truck then took off, and at one point, drove off the roadway into the grass in a neighborhood in Westview. As the driver continued to elude law enforcement, the vehicle ended crossing over into the Interstate 95 area at around 135th Street. The driver went on foot after bailing out of the truck.7Skyforce hovered over the scene where the suspect was detained by Miami-Dade...

South Florida artist inspires community and serves his country as first rapper in US Army Field Band

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:14:57 GMT

He chased his dream and became a full-time rap artist, but where he’s doing it is making history. 7’s Karen Hensel has today’s 7 Spotlight.They are soldiers clad in camouflage, serving their country with discipline, determination, and … rap?Kervens Jackson, Piper High School band director: “A rapper in the Army? Is that real?”It is now. Meet Staff Sgt. Lamar Riddick, an artist who rhymed his way into the ranks of the Army and hails from South Florida.Lamar Riddick, U.S. Army Field Band rapper: “It’s so amazing to do this full time and to serve the country.”Since 1946, the Army Field Band has allowed soldiers to serve their country through song. Now, for the first time ever, they’re bringing hip-hop to the center stage.Lamar Riddick: “It didn’t dawn on us until, I think, after we got the job that we were the first in military history.”Riddick was a Christian rapper before joining the Army.Lamar Riddick: ...

Hialeah man found guilty for role in Jan. 6 Capitol breach

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:14:57 GMT

WASHINGTON (WSVN) – A Hialeah man was found guilty of obstruction of an official proceeding and civil disorder for his actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol, the United States Department of Justice said in a news release. The disruption occurred during a joint session of the U.S. Congress to certify the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.According to officials, Gilbert Fonticoba, 49, a member of the “Vice City” chapter of the Proud Boys in Miami, participated in the illegal entry of the Capitol grounds and building, helping dismantle barricades and advancing with the mob. He was arrested by the FBI on Oct. 26, 2021, in Miami.Fonticoba’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for Jan. 11, 2024. The felony obstruction charge carries a maximum of 20 years in prison, along with potential financial penalties.Over 1,100 individuals have been charged in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol breach, with more than 400 facing charges of a...

Police found 115 bodies at Colorado ‘green’ funeral home while investigating putrid smells

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:14:57 GMT

CAÑON CITY, Colo. (AP) — At least 115 decaying bodies were found at a storage facility for a “green” funeral operator, after neighbors reported abhorrent smells emanating from the location in rural southern Colorado, police said Friday, calling it a “disturbing discovery.”The owner tried to conceal the improper storage of corpses and claimed he was doing taxidermy at the facility, according to a suspension letter sent to him by state regulators that was made public Friday. No one has been arrested or charged yet.The Return to Nature Funeral Home facility in the small town of Penrose had been unregistered with the state for 10 months on Wednesday when owner Jon Hallford spoke by phone with a state regulator the day after the smells were reported and police launched an investigationHallford acknowledged that he had a “problem” at the property, though the Colorado Office of Funeral Home and Crematory Registration document obtained by The Associated Press didn’t explain what Hallf...

Saturday showers, some Sunday sun

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:14:57 GMT

In writing this blog title, I realized I’ve used that same line recently. When you crunch the numbers, this will be the 15th weekend since June 1st (of the last 19 weekends) we’ve had rain one or two of the days. Grab the rain jacket for Saturday, but the fall sweater for Sunday. We’ll hold on to the cool temperatures for most of next week.The wet weather is from a cold front to our west and tropical moisture leftover from Philippe. Philippe became post tropical today. No matter the definition, there will still be tropical moisture that could bring excessive rainfall to Northern New England. The above pictures show where the heaviest rainfall is expected- western New England from the cold front and Maine from Philippe. Heads up, the rain and breeze could bring down some leaves and potentially cause some storm drains to clog.The HREF model above usually has a good handle on the rain. Starting out tomorrow, some of us will have light showers and others will have over...

Election denier and ‘MyPillow Guy’ Mike Lindell confirms he’s out of money, can’t pay legal bills

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:14:57 GMT

By STEVE KARNOWSKI (Associated Press)MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Attorneys who’ve been defending MyPillow chief executive and election denier Mike Lindell against defamation lawsuits by voting machine companies are seeking court permission to quit, saying he owes them unspecified millions of dollars and can’t pay the millions more that he’ll owe in legal expenses going forward.Lindell confirmed in an interview with The Associated Press on Friday that he’s out of money and said he understands his lawyers are people who need to make a living.Attorney Andrew Parker wrote in documents filed in federal court on Thursday that his firm and a second firm representing MyPillow in lawsuits by Smartmatic and Dominion Voting Systems can’t afford what it would cost to represent Lindell and MyPillow through the rest of the litigation. Continuing to defend him would put the firms “in serious financial risk,” he wrote. It’s the latest in a string of ...

Narges Mohammadi is the 5th Nobel peace laureate to win while imprisoned. Here are the others

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:14:57 GMT

STOCKHOLM (AP) — The head of the Norwegian Nobel Committee urged Iran to release imprisoned peace prize winner Narges Mohammadi and let her accept the award at the annual prize ceremony in December.Such appeals have had little effect in the past.Mohammadi, an Iranian human rights activist, is the fifth peace laureate to get the prize while in prison or under house arrest. In none of the previous cases did the prize result in the recipient’s release. Two of them remained in captivity until they died.Here’s a look at previous Nobel laureates who were in detention:CARL VON OSSIETZKYThe 1935 Nobel Peace Prize to German journalist Carl Von Ossietzky so infuriated Adolf Hitler that the Nazi leader prohibited all Germans from receiving Nobel Prizes.Ossietzky had been imprisoned for exposing secret plans for German rearmament in the 1920s. He was released after seven months but arrested again and sent to a concentration camp after the Nazis took power in 1933.Despite a campaign to set...

At least 16 migrants killed, 29 injured in a bus crash in southern Mexico

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:14:57 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — As many as 18 migrants from Venezuela and Peru died early Friday in a bus crash in southern Mexico, authorities said.Mexico’s National Immigration Institute said the dead include two women and three children, and that 29 people were injured. There was no immediate information on their condition.Prosecutors in the southern state of Oaxaca later said there had been an overcount due to some of the bodies being dismembered, and that the real death toll was 16. They also said some of the dead were from Haiti, not Peru. The Immigration Institute did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the discrepancy.Photos distributed by the institute showed the bus rolled over onto its side on a curvy section of highway in the southern state of Oaxaca. The cause of the crash on the town of San Pablo Huitzo, near the border with the neighboring state of Puebla, is under investigation.The institute said a total of 55 migrants, mostly from Venezuela, were aboard the...