A chilling discovery in a Lancaster County home has revealed more than 100 human skeletal remains, sparking widespread outrage and leaving authorities baffled. Jonathan Gerlach, 34, of Ephrata, is facing a slew of charges following his arrest at Mount Moriah Cemetery in Yeadon Borough on Monday night.
Gerlach was allegedly caught breaking into a grave at the historic cemetery, leading detectives to his Lancaster County home. What they found there was nothing short of horrific – human skulls, skeletal remains, and mummified feet and hands scattered throughout the basement.
"It's like a horror movie come to life," said Delaware County District Attorney Tanner Rouse, describing the scene when detectives walked into Gerlach's home on Tuesday. "Some of them were hanging from the ceiling... others were pieced together... some were just skulls sitting on a shelf."
Gerlach's Toyota RAV4 was found parked next to Mount Moriah Cemetery after hours, with human bones and skulls visible in the back seat. The vehicle's license plate had been tracked by detectives using license plate readers, revealing its frequent visits to the area around Halloween and Christmas Eve.
A search warrant executed at Gerlach's home uncovered not only his own skeletal remains but also those of two small children, three skulls, and other bones. Authorities are still investigating why Gerlach collected human remains and whether he sold any of the items allegedly stolen from grave sites.
While Gerlach is facing numerous charges, including burglary, desecration, and theft of venerated objects, authorities are struggling to determine his motive for collecting human remains. The investigation is ongoing, with detectives reviewing online behavior and social media activity.
The case has sent shockwaves through the community, with Yeadon Police Chief Henry Giammarco Jr. describing it as "the most disturbing thing I've seen in 30 years." Rouse has vowed to work tirelessly to collect and return the human remains, which include those of people who died recently and some that are over 100 years old.
Gerlach's girlfriend is being questioned by authorities, and while no other arrests have been made, detectives are keeping an open mind about the possibility of others involved. As the investigation unfolds, one thing is clear – the case has left a deep impact on those who have witnessed it, leaving many to wonder how such heinous crimes can occur in the name of human depravity.
Gerlach was allegedly caught breaking into a grave at the historic cemetery, leading detectives to his Lancaster County home. What they found there was nothing short of horrific – human skulls, skeletal remains, and mummified feet and hands scattered throughout the basement.
"It's like a horror movie come to life," said Delaware County District Attorney Tanner Rouse, describing the scene when detectives walked into Gerlach's home on Tuesday. "Some of them were hanging from the ceiling... others were pieced together... some were just skulls sitting on a shelf."
Gerlach's Toyota RAV4 was found parked next to Mount Moriah Cemetery after hours, with human bones and skulls visible in the back seat. The vehicle's license plate had been tracked by detectives using license plate readers, revealing its frequent visits to the area around Halloween and Christmas Eve.
A search warrant executed at Gerlach's home uncovered not only his own skeletal remains but also those of two small children, three skulls, and other bones. Authorities are still investigating why Gerlach collected human remains and whether he sold any of the items allegedly stolen from grave sites.
While Gerlach is facing numerous charges, including burglary, desecration, and theft of venerated objects, authorities are struggling to determine his motive for collecting human remains. The investigation is ongoing, with detectives reviewing online behavior and social media activity.
The case has sent shockwaves through the community, with Yeadon Police Chief Henry Giammarco Jr. describing it as "the most disturbing thing I've seen in 30 years." Rouse has vowed to work tirelessly to collect and return the human remains, which include those of people who died recently and some that are over 100 years old.
Gerlach's girlfriend is being questioned by authorities, and while no other arrests have been made, detectives are keeping an open mind about the possibility of others involved. As the investigation unfolds, one thing is clear – the case has left a deep impact on those who have witnessed it, leaving many to wonder how such heinous crimes can occur in the name of human depravity.
! I mean, collecting human remains and selling them or something? That's like, totally not cool 
. And what's with the graveyard break-in? It's like, a total grave breach (sorry had to!) 
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this is just sickening... i mean what's going through someone's mind when they're collecting human remains? 
it's like he was some kinda twisted collector of morbid stuff. i don't get how anyone could do this to innocent people 
and what's with all the skulls on the shelf? was he trying to make some sort of twisted art piece or just show off his depravity? 
i feel bad for the families who lost their loved ones, but at the same time, how did he even collect so many without getting caught? 
it's crazy to think that someone could do this stuff in secret. authorities are right to be baffled 
and need all the help they can get to figure out what happened. 
... but what I'm trying to wrap my head around here is, why do people resort to such dark and twisted things? I mean, think about it - we all have our own stuff that weighs us down, our own skeletons in the closet (no pun intended). But to take something as sacred and personal as human remains and turn them into some sort of twisted fascination... it's just mind-boggling.
and then he has the nerve to break into a cemetery at night... that's just sick. 
what if he had an accomplice or was part of some kinda dark cult? 
But seriously, it's absolutely horrific and just... no words. The fact that he was caught breaking into graves and now there are like a hundred skeletons in his basement? That's just not right 
It's time to get this guy locked up and make sure no one else gets their hands on these human remains. My heart goes out to all the families affected by his crimes 
meanwhile authorities are trying to figure out why he started doing this in the first place... was it a twisted hobby or something more sinister? 
the fact that these remains include kids and old people who died recently is just horrific... can't even imagine how much pain his victims' families must be feeling right now 
what if gerlach stumbled upon somethin' he wasn't supposed to? like, what if he was involved in somethin' dark or mysterious and the authorities are coverin' it up? 
we gotta keep an eye on this one, folks...
license plate readers and online activity are helpin investigators figure out his motive, but it's still unclear why someone would go through this... it's just a lot of questions right now 
and now there are small children involved too 
authorities need to get to the bottom of this ASAP 
so we can bring closure to the families 
and justice for the victims 
. The fact that his own remains are there too is just wild, I need to know more about how this all went down 
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