The co-owner of a Colorado funeral home in US where nearly 200 decaying bodies were found has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for corpse abuse.

Before Jon Hallford was sentenced, he apologised in court and listened to family members describe having nightmares about their loved ones decomposing in his care. They called him a "monster" who should rot in jail.

His ex-wife and co-owner Carie Hallford has pleaded guilty to similar charges and is awaiting sentencing.

The Return to Nature home, in the town of Penrose, Colorado, had given fake ashes to grieving relatives instead of their loved-ones' remains. Prosecutors said 189 bodies were improperly stored in the building over four years.

The courthouse was packed with family members on Friday, who asked the judge to impose the maximum 50-year sentence.

"I'm a daughter whose mother was treated like yesterday's trash and dumped in a site left to rot with hundreds of others," Kelly Mackeen told the court.

"I'm heartbroken, and I ask God every day for grace."

The bodies were found in piles inside non-refrigerated areas of the funeral home. Victims included children and foetuses.

"It is my personal belief that every one of us, every human being, is basically good at the core," Judge Eric Bentley said.

"But we live in a world that tests that belief every day, and Mr Hallford, your crimes are testing that belief."

Hallford, who had pleaded guilty in the hopes of a reduced sentence, apologised for his actions ahead of sentencing.

"I had so many chances to put a stop to everything and walk away, but I did not," he said. "My mistakes will echo for a generation. Everything I did was wrong."

Prosecutors say the couple was driven by "greed", and were earning enough money from the business to properly care for the bodies.

Located about 30 miles (48km) south of Colorado Springs, the funeral home specialised in burials where no chemicals, including embalming fluid, were used and where remains were buried in a biodegradable casket.

The business came under investigation after reports of a foul odour coming from the property. Officials discovered 115 bodies there early last October.

Jon Hallford was accused by officials of attempting to conceal the "improper storage of human remains".

Green funerals are allowed in the state but remains must be buried within 24 hours or be properly refrigerated.

Funeral home operators in Colorado are currently not required to be licensed, have a degree in mortuary science or even graduate high school.

Tougher legislation has been passed since the scandal erupted. (BBC, but headline reworked)