An American man is confronting more than five hundred criminal charges following a chilling discovery by investigators, who unearthed a macabre collection of over one hundred human skeletal remains inside his residence.
Basement Filled with Skulls and Bones
Jonathan Christian Gerlach, aged 34, was arrested on January 6, 2026, concluding a month-long probe into a series of break-ins at the Mount Moriah Cemetery in Yeadon, Pennsylvania. Police report that since early November, intruders had forcibly opened at least twenty-six mausoleums and underground vaults at the site, which is considered the nation's largest abandoned burial ground.
Officers apprehended Gerlach as he walked back to his car carrying a crowbar and a burlap sack. Inside the bag, they found the mummified remains of two small children, three skulls, and an assortment of other bones. He reportedly confessed to taking approximately thirty sets of human remains and even led detectives to the specific graves he had violated.
Investigation Uncovers Online 'Bone Selling' Group
The trail of evidence deepened when police spotted bones and skulls in the back seat of a car near the cemetery. This led them to Gerlach's home in Ephrata, Lancaster County. There, in the basement, authorities say they encountered a scene straight from a nightmare.
Delaware County District Attorney Tanner Rouse described it as detectives walking "into a horror movie come to life." He stated, "This [was] an unbelievable scene. They [the skeletal remains] were in various states. Some of them were hanging, as it were. Some of them were pieced together, some were just skulls on a shelf."
The inventory of discovered items was vast and gruesome, including:
- More than 100 human skulls
- Numerous long bones
- Mummified hands and feet
- Two decomposing torsos
- Various other skeletal parts
Jewellery believed to be stolen from graves was also recovered. In one particularly disturbing instance, a pacemaker was still attached to a skeleton.
Social Media Links and Extensive Charges
Authorities are now investigating a Facebook group named 'Human Bones and Skull Selling Group', where Gerlach was allegedly tagged in photos showing him holding a skull. An Instagram account, reportedly containing over one hundred images of skulls and several pictures of Gerlach, has also been examined. Captions on some images indicated the bones were for sale, though it is not yet confirmed if any remains were successfully sold.
Gerlach has been formally charged with one hundred counts each of abuse of a corpse and receiving stolen property. He also faces multiple counts of desecrating a public monument, desecrating a venerated object, desecrating a historic burial place, burglary, trespassing, and theft. He is currently being held in jail on a $1 million cash bond.
In an official statement, the Yeadon Borough Police Department thanked their partners and the Friends of Mount Moriah Cemetery for their cooperation, adding: "This was a horrific crime that deeply impacted our community... This case highlights the importance of agencies working together to pursue justice and protect the dignity of those who can no longer speak for themselves." The investigation remains active as additional locations are searched.
