A Shocked Family Faces the Theft of Loved Ones’ Rest

The Prichard family’s peaceful cemetery memories were shattered when five of their nine crypts at a Philadelphia‑area burial ground showed signs of intrusion, and a great‑great‑grandmother’s remains were taken. Judy Prichard McCleary, who believes her ancestors’ souls rest in heaven, expressed deep discomfort at the discovery. “It’s still a crime that hurts people, ” she told reporters after a court appearance where the accused surrendered his right to a full hearing. The man charged, 34‑year‑old Jonathan Gerlach of Lancaster County, faces around twenty burglary counts. Police allege he stole over a hundred human remains from several Pennsylvania counties and has been linked to other offenses. Gerlach was apprehended in January near Mount Moriah Cemetery, a historic 160‑acre plot on the Philadelphia–Yeadon line. Officers found bones and skulls in his car’s rear seat, prompting a search of his home and a storage unit that yielded more than one hundred skulls, mummified hands, feet, jewelry tied to graves, and a pacemaker still attached to a body.He is scheduled for arraignment on June 3, but his attorney—who declined to comment—suggests he may not appear. In court, Gerlach was noted for wearing glasses, a tight bun, and a collar‑sized tattoo around his neck. During the January arrest, authorities claimed Gerlach returned from the cemetery with a crowbar and a burlap bag containing remains of two small children, three skulls, and other bones. He allegedly told investigators he had taken about thirty sets of remains and could point to the graves he violated. The Prichard mausoleum, built in the early 1900s by Judy’s great‑great‑grandfather Jonathan Prichard—an Irish immigrant who became a grocer—holds the family’s collective burials. The grandfather reportedly moved two children’s bodies into the mausoleum before his own interment and that of other relatives. McCleary hopes the case will spur lawmakers to tighten controls on online sales of body parts, a potential motive in this disturbing series of thefts. “It appalls me that anyone could profit from the dead, ” she said. The incident has drawn widespread media attention and sparked discussions about respect for the deceased, law enforcement priorities, and the ethical implications of body part trafficking.