Former Harvard Medical School morgue manager stole and sold human body parts, charged with 7 others

A man who worked as a morgue manager at Harvard Medical School has been accused of stealing, selling and shipping human body parts, an indictment has claimed. 55-year-old Cedric Lodge worked at the medical school’s morgue in Boston. According to the federal indictment filed this week in US District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Cedric “stole dissected portions of donated cadavers, including…heads, brains, skin, bones, and other human remains, without the knowledge or permission of (the school) and removed those remains from the morgue in Massachusetts and transported them to his residence in New Hampshire.”

Cedric has been accused of conspiring with his wife, Denise, 63, according to CNN. Human remains were sold to individuals such as Katrina Maclean, 44, and Joshua Taylor, 46, and Matthew Lampi, 52, the indictment says. Two other suspects involved in the case have been identified as Jeremy Pauley and Candace Chapman Scott, according to New York Post.

The suspects have been charged in the indictment with conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods. Katrina owns a store in Peabody, Massachusetts, named Kat’s Creepy Creations. The store is where she allegedly sold the stolen body parts. “Some crimes defy understanding,” US attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania Gerard M. Karam said in a statement.

“The theft and trafficking of human remains strikes at the very essence of what makes us human. It is particularly egregious that so many of the victims here volunteered to allow their remains to be used to educate medical professionals and advance the interests of science and healing. For them and their families to be taken advantage of in the name of profit is appalling. With these charges, we are seeking to secure some measure of justice for all these victims.”

People voluntarily donate human remains to Harvard’s medical school for educational purposes. The remains are eventually usually cremated, and sometimes returned to the donor’s family.

Harvard Medical School fired Cedric on May 6. Harvard University officials said they are “appalled to learn that something so disturbing could happen on (their) campus — a community dedicated to healing and serving others.” “The reported incidents are a betrayal of HMS and, most importantly, each of the individuals who altruistically chose to will their bodies to HMS through the Anatomical Gift Program to advance medical education and research,” Harvard Medical School deans George Daley and Edward Hundert wrote in a letter to the community.

“We are so very sorry for the pain this news will cause for our anatomical donors’ families and loved ones, and HMS pledges to engage with them during this deeply distressing time,” they added.

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