PUEBLO, Colo. — The owners of Davis Mortuary, accused of hiding a dozen decomposing bodies behind a concealed door, were arrested and booked into the Pueblo County Jail, as of Thursday morning, according to the 10th Judicial District Attorney's Office.
Davis Mortuary co-owner Brian Cotter, was the active Pueblo County coroner, when 24 bodies were found at Davis Mortuary in the summer of 2025.
- Read more about the investigation here.
In a press conference on Thursday afternoon, the DA's office and CBI say that now 19 of the 24 bodies have been identified in the investigation. Their names have not been released at this time.
They are still working to identify the remaining five bodies.
Brian and Christopher Cotter face the following charges;
- 125 counts of abuse of a corpse
- 9 counts of forgery
- 27 counts of theft
The CBI said the remains of those who have been identified died between the years 2010 and 2012.
According to the CBI, the nine most recent identifications were made using Forensic Genetic Genealogy (FGG), which is a process involving a private lab to use public DNA databases.
Investigators are also continuing to look into several containers of bones, cremains and possible remains found in the Davis Mortuary.
10th Judicial District Attorney Kala Beauvais has previously said she can not file all appropriate charges for Brian and Christopher Cotter until the CBI finishes its investigation and turns the report over to her office.
The CBI said it cannot finish the investigation until all 24 bodies have been identified. However, investigators will provide updates on the arrest at a press conference Thursday at 1:30 p.m.
Related coverage:
- State identifies 18 of 24 remains found at Pueblo mortuary
- CBI positively identifies three more bodies found in Davis Mortuary
- Pueblo County commissioners select next coroner as state investigation into Davis Mortuary continues
- Four of the 24 bodies found inside Davis Mortuary in Pueblo identified
- Homes of Pueblo county coroner, brother searched in Davis Mortuary criminal investigation
- CBI: All bodies removed from Davis Mortuary in Pueblo; identification process may take months
- Bodies found behind 'hidden' door at Pueblo County Coroner's private business
