Jonathan Gerlach, 34, of Lancaster County is charged with stealing more than 100 human remains from Pennsylvania cemeteries across multiple counties, authorities said. Gerlach was arrested in January near Mount Moriah Cemetery on the outskirts of Philadelphia after police spotted bones and skulls in his car, investigators said.

The discovery of the remains has prompted widespread attention and raised questions about the protection of grave sites and the illegal market for human remains.

The Investigation

Police found more than 100 human skulls, mummified hands and feet, jewelry and a pacemaker during searches of Gerlach’s home and storage unit in Ephrata, investigators said. Gerlach told them he took about 30 sets of human remains and showed them the graves he stole from, according to the police account.

Gerlach is charged with two dozen burglary counts along with scores of other charges. His arraignment is scheduled for June 3, though his attorney said he was unlikely to appear. Gerlach waived his right to an evidentiary hearing at a brief court appearance Friday.

A Family’s Loss

Judy Prichard McCleary, a descendant of people buried at Mount Moriah Cemetery, said five of her family’s nine crypts were disturbed and the remains of a great-great-great aunt were stolen. McCleary said the crime is not victimless and called for greater protection of grave sites. “To be able to sell body parts on the internet, just appalls me. I think it should be stopped,” she said Friday.

A Cemetery’s History

Mount Moriah Cemetery, which dates to 1855, is a 160-acre historic cemetery located on the Philadelphia-Yeadon borough line with approximately 150,000 grave sites. The Prichard family mausoleum there was built in the early 1900s by McCleary’s great-great-grandfather, Jonathan Prichard, who came to the United States from Ireland and became a grocer.

According to family lore, Prichard invented the first paper bag, though no patent on file supports the claim. Prichard moved the remains of two children who had died earlier into the mausoleum before he and other relatives joined them there upon their deaths.

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