Man found with buckets full of human organs, bought skin on Facebook: police

A Pennsylvania man was found with several buckets of stolen human body parts he allegedly bought from Facebook, according to police.

East Pennsboro Township Police said they arrested Jeremy Pauley, 40, of Enola Thursday after he made the discovery while searching his basement. Police said Pauley is a self-proclaimed collector of “oddities” and was in possession of three complete human skeletons and up to 20 human skulls, according to ABC affiliate WHTM. He was soon released after posting $50,000 bail.

The investigation began when police received a complaint on June 14 about the possible sale of human remains on Facebook. Suspicion of Pauley’s alleged involvement began after a person called police on July 8 to report finding several 5-gallon buckets of “human organs” and “human skin” in his basement.

“This is one of the most bizarre investigations I have come across in my thirty-three years as a prosecutor,” Cumberland County District Attorney Seán M. McCormack said in a statement. “Just when I think I’ve seen everything, a case like this comes my way.”

The remains found in Pauley’s basement contained a human heart, brain, liver, skin and lungs. Also found, according to WHTM, was a child’s lower jaw with teeth attached, pieces of skin, a windpipe, and a skull with hair attached.

Police said they found out that Pauley bought the remains via Facebook Messenger from an Arkansas woman named Candace Scott, who allegedly stole the parts from a morgue. He reportedly bought $4,000 worth of organs and skin in hopes of reselling the items for a profit.

Pauley was charged with abusing dead bodies, receiving stolen property and trafficking in proceeds of unlawful activity.

“If you get to the heart of the case, it’s a stolen property receipt case,” McCormack told WHTM. “If you equate it to stolen car parts or something like that … if they trade stolen car parts and sell them, it’s a higher fee and that’s what you’re going to have in this case.”

The remains, which are owned by the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), were allegedly sent to Pennsylvania via the US Postal Service. Authorities intercepted and confiscated several packages containing more remains.

“Human bodies are an indispensable aid in the education of medical students, nurses and other health-care students,” the UAMS said in a statement to WHTM. “UAMS is extremely respectful of our donors when they are in our care here.”

“We have a contract with Arkansas Central Mortuary Services to bring the bodies to cremation after they are no longer used by our students,” the statement continued. “A morgue worker is under investigation by federal authorities for stealing some human remains from the morgue that were donated to UAMS. We are saddened and appalled that this has happened.”

news week has reached out to Facebook and the University of Arkansas for comment.