Former manager of the morgue at Harvard Medical School admits to stealing and selling human body parts.

According to reports from American media such as the New York Post on the 24th, the former director of the morgue at Harvard Medical School recently pleaded guilty to stealing and selling human remains donated to the school and may face up to 10 years in prison. The New York Post cited the US Department of Justice as saying that the man, Cedric Roke, 57 years old from New Hampshire, who was in charge of managing the morgue at Harvard Medical School, pleaded guilty on May 21 at a federal court in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, admitting to transporting and selling stolen human remains in multiple states from 2018 to March 2020. Under the plea agreement, he faces a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. According to ABC, the Pennsylvania District Attorney's Office stated in a press release that during his time at the morgue at Harvard Medical School, Roke removed human remains such as brains, skin, hands, faces, dissected heads, and other body parts from donated bodies before they were disposed of according to the anatomical donation agreement. The report cited prosecutors as saying that Roke then took these human remains home and sold them to buyers in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Pennsylvania alongside his wife. The transactions totaled tens of thousands of dollars. ABC mentioned that Harvard Medical School officials stated after Roke's indictment that the school terminated their employment relationship with Roke in May 2023 and criticized his actions as a "disgusting betrayal" that "should be morally condemned." The school also stated that other individuals at the school were unaware of Roke's actions and did not collaborate with him. Additionally, the report cited prosecutors as saying that several other individuals involved in the case have also admitted to transporting stolen human remains across state lines, including Roke's wife, Dennis Roke, who is awaiting sentencing.