Twenty decomposing bodies were found by Colorado state inspectors behind a hidden door in a funeral home owned by a county coroner.

The coroner told authorities he might have given fake ashes to the next of kin who requested cremations, the Associated Press reported.

Colorado funeral home bodies discovered

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State inspectors discovered the bodies in a room behind a door hidden by a cardboard display while an inspection was being performed at the Davis Mortuary in Pueblo, Colorado.

Citing a document from state regulators, the Associated Press reported that inspectors found a "strong odor of decomposition" after arriving at the mortuary. Brian Cotter, the owner and Pueblo County coroner, asked the inspectors not to go into the room.

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