DENVER | State inspectors in Colorado found about 20 decomposing bodies behind a hidden door in a funeral home owned by a county coroner, who told them he may have given fake ashes to next of kin who sought cremations, authorities disclosed Thursday.

The bodies were discovered in a room behind a door hidden by a cardboard display during an inspection of Davis Mortuary in Pueblo. Inspectors found a “strong odor of decomposition” after arriving at the business on Wednesday.

Brian Cotter — the owner and Pueblo County coroner — had asked them not to enter the room, according to a document from state regulators.

Colorado long had some of the weakest oversight of funeral homes in the nation, with no routine inspections or qualification requirements for funeral home operators. That has allowe

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