Former Harvard Morgue Manager Pleads Guilty to Body Parts Trafficking

The former manager of the Harvard Medical School morgue admitted guilt on Wednesday for illegally harvesting and selling body parts from donated corpses.

Cedric Lodge, 57, from Goffstown, New Hampshire, pleaded guilty to transporting stolen human remains across state lines in front of US District Judge Matthew W. Blanc, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Pennsylvania.

The agreement outlines a potential 10-year prison sentence, along with a $250,000 fine.

Officials reported that Lodge engaged in this illicit activity from 2018 until at least March 2020, dealing with bodies taken from the Harvard University School of Medicine morgue.

The maximum penalty under federal law includes a decade in prison, followed by supervised release, and a fine, which will be decided by a judge based on applicable federal guidelines and laws.

As a morgue employee, Lodge was responsible for removing various human remains—like organs, brain tissue, skin, hands, and faces—from donated bodies. These actions were supposed to follow the anatomical gift agreement made between the donors and the institution.

It’s noteworthy that Lodge wasn’t operating alone. Other individuals have already entered guilty pleas in connection with related charges, such as his wife, Dennis Lodge, along with Joshua Taylor, Andrew Ensanian, Matthew Lampi, and Angelo Pereira.

Lampi received a 15-month prison sentence, while Pereira was sentenced to 18 months. Dennis Lodge and Joshua Taylor are still awaiting their sentencing.

Additionally, another defendant named Candice Chapman Scott, hired from an Arkansas crematorium, also pleaded guilty in Arkansas federal court and is facing a 15-year prison term.