A Pennsylvania man’s alleged grave-robbing scheme has exposed a disturbing underground market where human remains are sold online like grotesque commodities, revealing how modern technology enables the desecration of our ancestors’ final resting places.
Story Highlights
- Jonathan Gerlach, 34, faces over 500 charges after police found 100+ human skulls and eight corpses at his home and storage unit
- Authorities allege he burglarized Mount Moriah Cemetery for months, using rappelling equipment to access underground vaults
- Investigation reveals disturbing online marketplace where human remains are sold through social media groups and payment apps
- Gerlach allegedly admitted to stealing 30 sets of remains and selling human skulls and a “human skin bag” to buyers nationwide
Cemetery Desecration Spans Multiple Months
Jonathan Gerlach allegedly conducted a systematic campaign against Mount Moriah Cemetery in Yeadon, Delaware County, beginning in November 2025. Police say he targeted both above-ground mausoleums and underground burial vaults, using rope and carabiners to rappel approximately 10 feet into crypts. The burglaries affected multiple historic family plots, including the Slack, Ogden, McCullough, Louber, Campbell, Ziegler, Hasson, and Charlton burial sites, some containing remains over a century old.
The scope of the alleged crimes escalated dramatically on December 20, 2025, when four underground vaults were burglarized in a single day. Police surveillance began after receiving a December 23 tip through Lancaster City Police CrimeWatch, which linked Gerlach to a Luzerne County mausoleum robbery and described decomposing remains hanging in his basement. The investigation intensified when officers spotted his vehicle at Mount Moriah and began tracking his movements through phone and vehicle records.
Shocking Discovery at Ephrata Residence
Gerlach’s arrest on January 6, 2026, came after investigators observed him leaving Mount Moriah Cemetery with a burlap bag and crowbar, with bones and skulls visible in his vehicle. The subsequent search of his Ephrata home on Washington Avenue uncovered a macabre collection that police described as resembling a “horror movie.” Officers recovered over 100 human skulls, long bones, mummified hands and feet, and two decomposing torsos hanging from the basement ceiling.
The investigation expanded when Gerlach’s fiancée revealed he maintained a storage unit at KO Storage in Ephrata. A cadaver dog alerted to the odor of human remains, leading to a search warrant that uncovered eight additional human corpses, miscellaneous body parts, cremated ashes, and vintage jewelry believed stolen from graves. The sheer volume of remains suggests a commercial-scale operation designed to supply an underground market hungry for human specimens.
Online Human Remains Trade Exposed
The investigation revealed Gerlach’s connection to a disturbing online ecosystem where human remains are bought and sold through social media platforms. Police discovered he followed numerous Instagram accounts focused on skeleton collecting, taxidermy, and “human skull stores.” Facebook groups dedicated to “Human Bones and Skull selling” facilitated these transactions, with one post specifically thanking Gerlach for providing a “human skin bag.”
Financial records show CashApp transactions linked to these sales, with Gerlach’s profile photo featuring a human skull. Investigators found evidence he traveled to Chicago specifically to sell a human skull, demonstrating the interstate nature of this macabre commerce. This underground market exploits modern technology and payment systems to commodify human remains, turning sacred burial sites into profit centers for grave robbers who show complete disregard for the dignity of the deceased and their families’ grief.
Sources:
Ephrata man Jonathan Gerlach admits to selling human remains stolen from PA cemetery
PA grave robber: More human remains discovered, corpses found hanging from ceiling
