One year after 24 bodies found at Davis Mortuary; family to hold vigil
PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) -- It's been one year since the owners of Davis Mortuary, one of whom was the Pueblo County Coroner at the time, were accused of hiding bodies in a secret room of their funeral home.
Since that discovery, families have been asking for answers. Now, they are holding a candlelight vigil in memory of the Davis Mortuary victims. KRDO13 will be at the vigil tonight. The vigil starts at 6:30 p.m. on the sidewalk outside the now-shuttered Davis Mortuary.
According to records from the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies, former Pueblo County Coroner Brian Cotter's privately owned funeral home was due for an inspection back in August of 2025. When inspectors arrived, they noted "a strong odor of decomposition."
Inspectors said they noted a door hidden by a cardboard display, and Brian asked the inspectors not to go inside, according to documents. That is when investigators discovered what is now known to be 24 hidden bodies.
According to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Cotter told inspectors that some of the bodies had been awaiting cremation for approximately 15 years.
CBI says a total of 24 bodies from Davis Mortuary, along with multiple containers of bones and multiple containers of probable human tissue, were transferred to the El Paso County Coroner's Office for attempted identification.
KRDO13 Investigates was the first to uncover the allegations.
READ OUR FULL COVERAGE HERE: The Coroner's Secret Room
The county started taking steps to remove Brian as coroner a few days after the inspection of his private funeral home; he signed a letter of resignation shortly after.
In October of 2025, six of the victims were identified; that number jumped to 19 this year when the Colorado Bureau of Investigations provided an update on the situation.
The CBI says, in addition to the physical abuse of remains, the investigation identified evidence of systemic financial and administrative misconduct, including the fabrication of death certificates and the misappropriation of funds from preneed funeral contracts. KRDO13 asked the DA's office whether any of the charges related to the Davis Mortuary contract with the Colorado Department of Corrections, and the DA's office said no.
Since the discovery of the hidden bodies, the Cotters have been sued several times. In November of 2025, KRDO13 confronted Brian during two separate court appearances, to which he did not respond. A group of families had sued the Cotters over the discovery of the bodies, but they were also sued separately by victims' families.
In June of this year, the Cotter brothers were officially arrested and charged with the following:
- 125 counts of abuse of a corpse (class 6 felony: 24 bodies, 83 cremains, 16 sets of bones, 2 containers of human tissue)
- 9 counts of forgery (class 5 felony)
- 9 counts of theft (class 5 felony)
- 9 counts of theft (class 6 felony)
- 7 counts of theft (class 1 misdemeanor)
- 2 counts of theft (class 2 misdemeanor)
Originally, they were facing a $1 million bond; that was lowered to $500,000 and the brothers were released shortly after being arrested.
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