over burial of indigent bodies in Las Animas County
by Mark Craddock
and Ruth Stodghill
TRINIDAD — The Colorado Bureau of Investigation confirmed it is looking into the activities of the Las Animas County Coroner’s Office over its handling of two unclaimed bodies which were buried in the Starkville Cemetery.
“I can confirm the CBI has received a request from Las Animas County Sheriff’s Office to assist in this investigation,” Susan Medina, CBI Chief of Staff, said Monday “This request is extremely preliminary in nature, and particulars about the CBI’s involvement are not available at this time.”
The action comes on the heels of a Dec. 5 county commissioners work session in which a local funeral director lodged a complaint against Coroner Dominic Verquer, accusing him of secretly burying two, and possibly more, homeless bodies in an unmarked grave at the cemetery.
When reached for comment last week, Verquer declined an interview, citing the advice of his attorney.
At the Dec. 4 meeting, Tom Murphy told commissioners he was present for the Sept. 6 exhumation of Frederick Huff, a homeless man who reportedly lived in the area for decades.
He was reported missing by family and was later identified as having been buried in the cemetery.
Murphy said crews found three bodies stacked on top of each other in the grave, one of which was apparently Huff’s.
Morgan Shier, whose father, David, age 81, disappeared in February, believes one of the other bodies is that of her father, who lived about 1.5 miles away from the cemetery.
She implored commissioners to get to the bottom of this and determine if her father’s remains were among those exhumed.
Carl Mestas, owner of the property that includes the Starkville Cemetery, told commissioners he was unaware that the coroner had buried the bodies at the cemetery, and said he had not received appropriate paperwork from Verquer’s office, including death certificates and authority for final disposition.
The Las Animas County Sheriff’s Office, which sought the CBI’s help last week, had no comment as of Monday.
