DENVER — The former funeral director accused of keeping a woman’s body in a hearse in the backyard of his home will be arraigned in mid-August after his arraignment on Monday was postponed.
Attorneys for Miles Harford told a Denver District Court judge that “continued investigation and mitigation” need to happen. They asked the judge to delay Harford’s arraignment to Aug. 19.
Harford operated Apollo Funeral and Cremation Services in Jefferson County from 2012 to September 2022. Police issued a warrant for his arrest in February, after investigators found the body of Christina Rosales, who died in 2022, in a hearse at Harford's rented home after he was evicted. Investigators also recovered the cremated remains of at least 30 people who died between 2012 and 2021.
George Rosales, husband of Christina, whose body was discovered in the hearse, sat in the front row in the courtroom on Monday and listened to the brief hearing.
“I want Miles to know that I'm still watching him and that I'm still active in this investigation,” Rosales said. “And I just don't want this to happen anybody else.”
Family told Steve On Your Side that Harford got to know Rosales when he was a student at a middle school in Sheridan and Rosales worked in the school’s kitchen. They said they trusted Harford to handle her funeral when she passed away in 2022.
Investigators said Harford was experiencing money problems at the time, which harmed his relationship with area crematoriums who wouldn’t cremate Rosales’ body. Police said Harford gave the family someone else’s remain passing them off as Rosales’.
Her story helped spark a legislative effort at the state capitol this past session to regulate the funeral industry.
“My eyes have been open wide,” Rosales said. “I'm glad we finally got laws on the books, but now justice needs to be served.”
Irene Lucero was also in the courtroom Monday morning. In March, Lucero said she had pre-paid Harford about $4,000 to handle her funeral arrangements one day.
“Where's my money,” she said. “The uncertainty is that now I don't know who's going to pick up my body. That's a big issue to me.”
In March, prosecutors hinted more charges could be coming against Harford, who already faces theft, forgery and abuse of a corpse charges for the incident involving Rosales. Police found 30 cremated remains inside the home during the eviction. Others have accused Harford of selling pre-planned funerals long after his business closed.
Send a tip to Steve on Your Side Consumer Investigator Steve Staeger.
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