Cedric Lodge, a former morgue manager at Harvard Medical School, has pled guilty to charges related to the trafficking of stolen human remains. The plea was entered before Chief United States District Judge Matthew W. Brann in Scranton, as announced by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
Acting United States Attorney John Gurganus reported that from 2018 to March 2020, Lodge engaged in selling and transporting human remains taken without authorization from the Harvard Medical School morgue in Boston. These remains were removed after their use for research and teaching but before proper disposal as per donation agreements. Lodge transported these remains to his home in New Hampshire, where he and his wife Denise sold them across state lines.
Lodge admitted to selling parts such as organs, brains, skin, hands, faces, and dissected heads to individuals including Joshua Taylor and Andrew Ensanian. Many of these items were resold for profit to others like Jeremy Pauley, who has also pled guilty to related charges.
Other individuals involved have entered guilty pleas in connection with this case. This includes Denise Lodge, Joshua Taylor, Andrew Ensanian, Matthew Lampi—who received a 15-month sentence—and Angelo Pereyra—sentenced to 18 months. Denise Lodge and Joshua Taylor are awaiting sentencing. Additionally, Candace Chapman-Scott was sentenced to 15 years for similar offenses involving an Arkansas crematorium.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), and East Pennsboro Township Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alisan Martin is leading the prosecution.
Under federal law, Cedric Lodge faces a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment along with potential supervised release and fines upon sentencing.
