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Denise Lodge, the wife of former Harvard Medical School morgue director Cedric Lodge, has pleaded guilty in a case involving a trafficking ring selling stolen human body parts, including heads, feet, and hands, to buyers worldwide.
This federal case has shocked the academic and legal community, with Denise, 64, pleading guilty to one count of interstate transportation of stolen property. The illicit business involved theft of body parts donated to Harvard Medical School without the institution’s or donors’ families’ consent.
Cedric Lodge took these stolen remains to his home in New Hampshire and sold them online for financial gain, involving other individuals such as an Arkansas morgue employee and a Massachusetts store owner. Harvard University condemned Cedric Lodge’s actions as a betrayal and pledged to prevent similar incidents in the future.
The scandal also exposes a growing black market for anatomical parts, with prices ranging from $3,000 for a human head to $1,000 for a pair of hands, depending on their condition. The case is under federal investigation, and a trial is expected to begin in August.
