West
Dead woman's body, cremated remains of up to 30 found after ex-funeral home owner arrested
Colorado authorities issued an arrest warrant Friday for a former funeral home owner they say kept a deceased woman’s body in a hearse for two years at a home where police also found up to 30 cremated remains.
The grisly discovery occurred Feb. 6 during a court-ordered eviction of a Denver house rented by 33-year-old Miles Harford, who owned Apollo Funeral and Cremation Services in the Denver suburb of Littleton, Denver police said. It had been closed since September 2022.
The discovery is the latest in a string of horrific cases in recent years involving mishandled bodies by funeral home operators in Colorado, which has some of the weakest oversight of the funeral industry in the nation. The state has no routine inspections of funeral homes or qualification requirements for operators.
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One married couple is awaiting trial in Colorado Springs following their arrest last year for allegedly abandoning almost 200 bodies over several years inside a bug-infested facility and giving fake ashes to family members of the deceased. The operators of another funeral home in the western Colorado city of Montrose received federal prison sentences last year for mail fraud after they were accused of selling body parts and distributing fake ashes.
Harford, who police said is not on the run and is cooperating, is expected to be charged with abuse of a corpse, forgery of the death certificate and theft of the money paid for the cremation. Other charges are possible as the investigation continues, said Denver District Attorney Beth McCann.
A former funeral home owner from suburban Denver has been arrested after a dead woman’s body and up to 30 human cremains were found on a property he was evicted from.
No voicemail was set up on a telephone number listed for Harford. He also did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment.
Denver Police Cmdr. Matt Clark said Harford acknowledged to police that he could not find a crematory to process the 63-year-old woman’s body and decided to store it in the hearse. The woman’s family told investigators they were given what they believed were the woman’s remains, which have been turned over to the Office of the Medical Examiner.
The family is devastated, Clark said.
“They’re shocked. They were hurt by this,” he said. “They believed that they were processing their grief with the remains that they had and had had services with that. And then they come to find out that that was not the person that was processed, and in fact, she was being held in that hearse there.”
The other cremains found on the property appear to have been professionally cremated, officials said. Investigators are checking labels on the cremains and state databases in an effort to return the cremains to their families. DNA testing cannot be used, officials said.
State licensing records show no discipline or board actions for Apollo Funeral and Cremation Services. The business license was issued in March 2012 and expired in May 2022.
In 2018, Harford and his company were sued by another funeral home company and ordered to pay about $27,000 for unspecified services the other home provided, according to court records. The same company, Kansas-based Wilbert Funeral Services, sued Harford and the company again in 2021, saying Harford owed nearly $9,000. That case is still pending.
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MICHELIN Guide adds 12 new restaurants in California
Discover the 12 new California restaurants added by Michelin Guide, including spots in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and more!
First came monster donuts piled high with bacon and Fruity Pebbles. Then there were cronuts—the croissant-donut hybrid that had everyone buzzing. Later came the era of everything filled with pistachio paste, followed by pastries crafted to look like fruit. For Californians with a sweet tooth, the latest viral dessert trend is often just a drive away.
Now, a new report has confirmed what residents in the Bay Area have known for decades: when it comes to sweets, San Francisco can’t be beat.
From artisanal sourdough bakeries to late-night ice cream spots, San Francisco has secured its place as the fourth sweetest city in the United States, according to new research from Betway.
Analyzing dessert shop availability alongside online appetite for sugary treats, the study ranked major cities across the U.S. and Canada to uncover the nation’s sweetest city.
San Francisco ranks as the fourth most favored spot for folks with a sweet tooth in the nation, placing behind Miami, Atlanta, and Las Vegas, but ahead of cities like Boston and New Orleans—have beignets lost their luster?
The report noted San Francisco’s strong dessert scene, including 111 bakeries and cookie shops, 54 ice cream parlors, and 135 dessert shops. Overall, the authors wrote, the mix of high-quality bakeries and steady demand keeps the city firmly in the top tier of dessert cities.
Viral dessert spots in San Francisco to visit now
San Francisco’s ranking among the best cities for desserts should come as no surprise. Legend has it that the city is the first place in the U.S. to serve a fortune cookie. The slightly sweet, crispy cookie with a grain of insight—a memorable fortune read: “Buy clothes now, more expensive later”—is still produced in San Francisco at the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory. The factory produces up to 10,000 fortune cookies a day and offers tours that should be on every visitor’s San Francisco itinerary.
The pastry shop that some say has the best croissant in San Francisco (see: Arsicault below) has experienced long lines since it opened its doors in the North Beach district three years ago. Owner and head pastry chef Sophia Smith honed her skills in Paris, where she mastered the art of lamination, a process that begins with high-quality French butter and yields a range of sweet and savory pastries that regularly sell out. The demand at the viral spot has gotten so great that a notice on their website asks customers not to line up before 7:45 a.m. The shop opens at 9 a.m., Thursday through Sunday.
Named the best new bakery in the U.S. by Bon Appétit when it opened its doors in 2016, Arsicault is a slice of Parisian heaven with three locations in San Francisco. Known for their traditional French pastries, including sweet and savory croissants, each location has a slightly different menu. Customers will find an assortment of sundries, including French baguettes, scones, cookies, quiches, and freshly made sandwiches.
The exquisiteness of their guava tarts warranted a mention in the New York Times when they were a pop-up; now, Sol Bakery is the latest viral sensation to open a brick-and-mortar spot in San Francisco. Located at the corner of Hayes and Central in the city’s Panhandle district, Sol Bakery is known for its viral tart, as well as its fresh focaccia, cakes, and sourdough croissants.
The name says it all. Known for their inspired multi-layered crepe cakes, Sweet Glory delivers on taste and aesthetics. Located in the Inner Sunset area of the city, Sweet Glory offers handcrafted desserts made with handpicked ingredients. In addition to their crepe cakes, try their moreish Basque burnt cheesecakes, which also come in a delectable range of flavors.
If you know, you know, and Holy Nata knows how to make the best Portuguese tart in San Francisco. Gooey, crispy, and luscious all in one, the “pastel de nata” is an egg custard tart with provenance. The recipe of the viral tart comes straight from Lisbon and is infused with the love of family and tradition. In addition to the traditional (which can be bought by the box), Holy Nata offers a rotating assortment of flavors each week. Holy Nata is in the city’s financial district.
Denver, CO
Denver police still looking for help solving double murder at American Elm restaurant 3 years ago
Police in Denver sent out a reminder on Friday that they are still looking for the public’s help trying to solve a double murder that sent shockwaves through the city’s food-service industry.
Emerall Vaughn-Dahler and Ignacio Gutierrez Morales were killed three years ago to the day — on April 24, 2023.
The crime was committed at the American Elm restaurant in the city’s West Highlands neighborhood.
Both people were employees there and were fatally shot at the restaurant in the late part of the morning.
Morales was a 58-year-old prep cook at the restaurant whose nickname was “Nacho.” He had three grown children. His family said after his death that he had a kind and gentle spirit and that they couldn’t think of anyone who would have wanted to harm him.
Vaughn-Dahler, 34, worked as a general manager at the restaurant. She was married with a 12-year-old son. Her husband Andrew Dahler told CBS Colorado when he learned she had been killed, he was devastated and “didn’t want it to be real.”
“Three years have passed, and their killer has still not been identified. The families of Emerall and Ignacio continue to live with unimaginable loss and are still searching, still hoping, and still asking for answers,” Denver police wrote in a Metro Denver Crime Stoppers bulletin.
The reward for information provided to authorities that leads to an arrest is as high as $32,600. Anyone who might have seen something suspicious on the 4100 block of West 38th Avenue between 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. pm April 24, 2023, is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at (720) 913-7867. Tipsters can remain anonymous.
SEATTLE — A 70-year-old traffic flagger was hospitalized after being struck by a dump truck on Capitol Hill on Friday morning, according to Seattle police.
The collision happened near the intersection of Broadway and East Pine Street just before 11 a.m. The woman was taken to Harborview Medical Center.
She was working for a private company at the time of the crash, according to police.
The Seattle Police Department Traffic Collision Investigative Squad is investigating.
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The dump truck driver remained at the scene and was speaking with officers, police said.
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