Harvard Health care School morgue supervisor accused of thieving, providing human remains

5 persons, including a previous Harvard Medical University morgue manager, deal with federal rates immediately after allegedly conspiring to steal and market entire body components from cadavers donated to the institution.

A federal grand jury indicted Cedric Lodge, 55, of Goffstown, New Hampshire, who managed the morgue for the Anatomical Presents Application at Harvard Health care University, with conspiracy and interstate transportation of stolen goods charges for allegedly transporting and marketing the human continues to be across a number of states among 2018 and 2022.

Cedric Lodge’s spouse, Denise Lodge, 63, and two other individuals — Katrina Maclean. 44, of Salem, Massachusetts, and Joshua Taylor, 46, of West Lawn, Pennsylvania — were also indicted on the exact same expenses as part of an alleged conspiracy to “gain from the interstate shipment, order, and sale of stolen human remains,” the indictment stated. They are not affiliated with Harvard, faculty officers explained.

A fifth gentleman — Jeremy Pauley, 41, of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania — was also billed with conspiracy and interstate transportation of stolen goods prices for allegedly getting and then marketing human remains stolen from two professional medical faculties, together with Harvard’s. He is also not affiliated with Harvard, university officials reported.

Harvard officers termed the alleged pursuits an “abhorrent betrayal” and “morally reprehensible” in a assertion on Wednesday, noting that investigators feel Cedric Lodge acted “without having the know-how or cooperation of everyone else” at the establishment.

The courtroom paperwork, submitted this 7 days in the United States District Court Middle District of Pennsylvania, lay out an unsettling scheme involving the alleged theft and sale of human overall body sections — including brains, faces and pores and skin — in several states, with transactions totaling in the tens of countless numbers of bucks.

When utilized as morgue supervisor at the Boston clinical university, Cedric Lodge had access to the morgue and the donated cadavers, according to his indictment. He allegedly stole dissected portions of donated cadavers, like heads, brains, skin and bones, from the morgue and transported them to his house in New Hampshire, the indictment reported. He also allegedly applied his access to permit Maclean and Taylor into the morgue to “opt for what continues to be to purchase,” the indictment alleged.

Cedric Lodge and his spouse allegedly communicated with other folks, which include Maclean and Taylor, “as a result of world-wide-web social media web sites and mobile telephones pertaining to the sale of stolen human continues to be,” the indictment mentioned.

Among the transactions referenced in the indictment, Cedric Lodge and Maclean allegedly met at the morgue on Oct. 28, 2020, following Maclean agreed to acquire two “dissected faces” for $600 from him.

Maclean allegedly saved and marketed stolen continues to be at her retailer, Kat’s Creepy Creations in Peabody, Massachusetts, as perfectly as delivered to buyers in many states, which includes Pauley, according to the indictment.

In a single instance, in 2021, Maclean allegedly shipped Pauley human pores and skin to be tanned to develop leather-based, and delivered him with human pores and skin as payment, according to the indictment. Maclean contacted Pauley to affirm the cargo arrived since she “preferred to make guaranteed it got to you and I never count on brokers at my door,” the indictment said.

Taylor is also accused of obtaining stays stolen from Harvard Health care University and marketing them to potential buyers such as Pauley, according to the indictment.

Between September 2018 and July 2021, Taylor transferred 39 digital payments to a PayPal account operated by Denise Lodge totaling $37,355.56 in “payment for human remains stolen by Cedric Lodge from Harvard Medical University,” the indictment said. One $1,000 payment in 2019 was sent with the memo “head number 7,” while a $200 payment in 2020 had the memo “braiiiiiins,” according to the indictment.

Pauley allegedly transferred 25 payments totaling $40,049.04 to Taylor by using PayPal, in accordance to the indictment, which did not specify what the payments ended up for.

“Some crimes defy understanding,” U.S. Attorney Gerard Karam mentioned in a assertion. “It is specifically egregious that so a lot of of the victims below volunteered to make it possible for their remains to be utilised to teach health-related industry experts and progress the interests of science and healing. For them and their family members to be taken edge of in the title of financial gain is appalling. With these costs, we are in search of to secure some measure of justice for all these victims.”

Karam said the university, “which is also a victim right here,” is cooperating in the investigation.

FBI Boston exclusive brokers arrested Cedric and Denise Lodge and Maclean on Wednesday with no incident, the FBI reported. On-line records do not consist of legal professional info for them. ABC News was not able to attain them for comment.

Taylor entered a not responsible plea on Wednesday, court data display. His attorney declined to comment to ABC Information on the allegations.

Harvard Medical University terminated Cedric Lodge’s work on May perhaps 6, university officials explained in Wednesday’s statement.

“We are appalled to master that a thing so disturbing could take place on our campus — a community committed to healing and serving others,” Harvard Health care Faculty Dean George Daley and Dean for Professional medical Schooling Edward Hundert explained, introducing they are “quite sorry for the discomfort this information will lead to for our anatomical donors’ family members and cherished kinds.”

The university has been examining its very own documents to identify which donors may well have been impacted, they mentioned.

Pauley is also implicated in an additional alleged human continues to be trafficking plan involving the College of Arkansas for Health-related Sciences in Small Rock, in accordance to court documents.

He is accused of shopping for stolen continues to be from Candace Chapman Scott, who labored at a Minimal Rock mortuary and crematorium that experienced contracted with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences for cremation expert services for cadavers acquired as a result of its anatomical reward method, in accordance to court filings.

Pauley is accused of marketing human continues to be for sale on Facebook and providing continues to be he bought from Scott to customers in various states, which include Matthew Lampi, 52, of East Bethel, Minnesota, according to courtroom filings. Pauley and Lampi allegedly acquired and offered from each other about an extended interval of time and exchanged about $100,000 in on the net payments, prosecutors allege.

Lampi was also indicted this 7 days on conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods costs in connection with his alleged dealings with Pauley.

On-line court information do not include any legal professional facts for Lampi and Pauley. ABC News was unable to arrive at them for comment.

Scott was earlier indicted in the Japanese District of Arkansas. She pleaded not guilty in April to numerous prices, including interstate transportation of stolen residence and mail fraud.

ABC News’ Alexandra Faul contributed to this report.