Six Charged In Trafficking Human Remains Stolen from Harvard Morgue; Brains Sold, Skin Turned Into Leather

Cedric Lodge (top left), the manager in question, and wife Denise Lodge (top right) were two of the six people named by the U.S. Attorney's Office this week in connection with trafficking in human remains from both the school and an Arkansas mortuary between 2018 and 2022. The Lodges, Mathew Lampi of East Bethel, Minnesota, Katrina Maclean (bottom right) of Salem, Massachusetts and Joshua Taylor of West Lawn, Pennsylvania were all indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods.

According to a press release from the Attorney's Office, Cedric "stole organs and other parts of cadavers donated for medical research and education before their scheduled cremations," sometimes allegedly bringing the remains to his New Hampshire home before selling them to Maclean, Taylor and "others." Lodge is also accused of allowing the pair to enter the morgue to examine the cadavers before making their purchases, all without the knowledge of the school or the family members of the deceased.

Maclean is the owner of Kat's Creepy Creations. which specializes in selling "creepy dolls, oddities and bone art." According to Mass Live, she often posted to Instagram about her creations, and showed off one in 2020 which she boasted had a "real human skull." At the time, she said, "If you're in the market for human bones hit me up." She even continued to post about her bone art after the FBI searched her home in March of this year. The social media pages for her business have since been shut down.

According to the indictment, Maclean once shipped human skin to Jeremy Pauley (bottom left) and "engaged in his services to tan the skin to create leather." She is said to have paid him in more skin, instead of money. Maclean also allegedly asked Cedric to supply more tissue to send to "the dude I sent the chest piece to tan," and later contacted the buyer to confirm the shipment's arrival by saying, "wanted to make sure it got to you and I don't expect agents at my door."

Taylor, meanwhile, is said to have had 39 different transactions to a PayPal account allegedly operated by Denise, totaling $37,355.56. The memo for one payment for $200 read "braiiiiiins," while another for $1,000 said "head number 7", according to authorities. Both Taylor and Maclean are accused of reselling the stolen remains for profit.

Pauley was arrested last year, after authorities received a complaint about possible body parts being sold on Facebook. Inside his home, they allegedly found "possible human remains in the basement of the residence contained inside of several 5-gallon buckets," including skin and organs. Pauly also allegedly purchased stolen remains from Candace Chapman Scott, who worked at a Little Rock, Arkansas mortuary and crematorium.

Per the Attorney's Office, Scott, who was previously indicted, "stole parts of cadavers she was supposed to have cremated, many of which had been donated to and used for research and educational purposes by an area medical school, as well as the corpses of two stillborn babies who were supposed to be cremated and returned as cremains to their families." Some of those stolen remains were allegedly sold by Pauley to Matthew Lampi and exchanged more than $100,000 in online payments.

Scott, Pauley and Taylor have pleaded not guilty.

"Some crimes defy understanding," said United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam in a release. "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."

"The defendants violated the trust of the deceased and their families all in the name of greed," said FBI Special Agent in Charge Jacqueline Maguire. "While today's charges cannot undo the unfathomable pain this heinous crime has caused, the FBI will continue to work tirelessly to see that justice is served."

"Using the United States mail to facilitate the theft and shipment of human remains is a federal crime and the Postal Inspection Service will do everything in its power to stop it," added Christopher Nielsen, the Inspector in Charge of the Philadelphia Division of the Postal Inspection Service. "

In a statement posted to the Harvard Medical School website calling the situation an "abhorrent betrayal," the Dean of Faculty of Medicine and Dean for Medical Education said Lodge's alleged actions were "morally reprehensible."

"Investigators believe that Lodge acted without the knowledge or cooperation of anyone else at HMS or Harvard. Lodge was indicted along with other individuals not affiliated with Harvard," they stressed, adding that they are "appalled to learn that something so disturbing could happen on our campus."