A Pennsylvania man has been charged with hundreds of offences after more than 100 pieces of human remains, including skulls and headless torsos, were discovered in his car, home and storage locker. Jonathan Gerlach, 34, was arrested on Tuesday following an investigation into the desecration of a historic cemetery in the state.
The remains found included mummified feet, a skeleton with a cardiac pacemaker still attached, and items believed to be hundreds of years old. Delaware County District Attorney Tanner Rouse said detectives had recovered “an awful lot of bones” and were working to identify the victims and establish where they came from, adding that it would take considerable time.
Prosecutors allege Gerlach spent months forcing his way into at least 26 mausoleums and underground burial vaults at Mount Moriah cemetery in Yeadon, a community in Delaware County. The cemetery is the final resting place of Betsy Ross, the seamstress credited with sewing the first US flag, according to Yeadon’s mayor, Rohan Hepkins, who also serves on the cemetery’s governing board.
Police became suspicious of Gerlach after his Toyota RAV4 was repeatedly captured by license plate readers near the cemetery, which has no fence and boasts numerous accessible entrances. Cellphone records also placed him in the vicinity during the thefts. He was arrested on Tuesday as he left Mount Moriah carrying a crowbar and a burlap sack containing two children’s mummified remains, three skulls and several loose bones. He allegedly told detectives he had used the crowbar to pry open a grave and steal remains.
A subsequent search of his home in Ephrata, about 70 miles away, uncovered remains in the basement, on shelves, hanging from the ceiling, and at a separate storage locker. Rouse described the scene as “a horror movie come to life”. Police also recovered jewellery, which they are investigating to determine whether it was taken from graves to be sold.
Gerlach faces nearly 575 charges, including more than 100 counts of corpse abuse, as well as theft, burglary, desecration of venerated objects, trespassing, and criminal mischief. He is being held in lieu of $1 million bail and is due to appear in court again on 20 January. No attorney was listed for him. Rouse expressed sympathy for families who may be affected, noting that some of the remains are believed to be those of infants only months old.
