Overview
- Friends of Mount Moriah are installing new trail cameras, repairing perimeter fencing, and increasing patrols, and the volunteer group is seeking donations after spending about $20,000 on urgent fixes.
- Detectives arrested Jonathan Gerlach on Jan. 6 after observing bones in his vehicle and seeing him exit the cemetery with a burlap bag, crowbar, and other tools.
- Searches recovered more than 100 human skulls and other remains at his Ephrata home and eight additional corpses from a storage locker, according to investigators.
- Search warrants say Gerlach admitted selling some remains online, with detectives tracing activity to social media groups and accounts tied to human bone sales.
- Authorities have documented at least 26 mausoleums and vaults forced open since November; Gerlach is jailed on $1 million bail with a Jan. 20 preliminary hearing and the prospect of further charges.