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(BOSTON) — Five people, including a Harvard Medical School morgue manager, face federal charges after allegedly conspiring to steal and sell body parts from cadavers donated to the institution.

A federal grand jury indicted Cedric Lodge, 55, of Goffstown, New Hampshire, who managed the morgue for the Anatomical Gifts Program at Harvard Medical School, with conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods charges for allegedly transporting and selling the human remains across multiple states between 2018 and 2022.

Cedric Lodge’s wife, Denise Lodge, 63, and two others — Katrina Maclean. 44, of Salem, Massachusetts, and Joshua Taylor, 46, of West Lawn, Pennsylvania — were also indicted on the same charges as part of an alleged conspiracy to “profit from the interstate shipment, purchase, and sale of stolen human remains,” the indictment stated.

A fifth man — Jeremy Pauley, 41, of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania — was also indicted by a federal grand jury on conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods charges for allegedly purchasing and then selling human remains stolen from two medical schools, including Harvard’s.

The indictments, filed this week in the United States District Court Middle District of Pennsylvania, lay out an unsettling scheme involving the alleged theft and sale of human body parts — including brains, faces and skin — in multiple states, with transactions totaling in the tens of thousands of dollars.

As morgue manager at the Boston medical school, Cedric Lodge had access to the morgue and the donated cadavers, according to his indictment. He allegedly stole dissected portions of donated cadavers, including heads, brains, skin and bones, from the morgue and transported them to his home in New Hampshire, the indictment said. He also allegedly used his access to let Maclean and Taylor into the morgue to “choose what remains to purchase,” the indictment alleged.

Cedric Lodge and his wife allegedly communicated with others, including Maclean and Taylor, “through internet social media websites and cellular telephones regarding the sale of stolen human remains,” the indictment stated.

Among the transactions referenced in the indictment, Cedric Lodge and Maclean allegedly met at the morgue on Oct. 28, 2020, after Maclean agreed to purchase two “dissected faces” for $600 from him.

Maclean allegedly stored and sold stolen remains at her store, Kat’s Creepy Creations in Peabody, Massachusetts, as well as shipped to buyers in multiple states, including Pauley, according to the indictment.

In one instance, in 2021, Maclean allegedly shipped Pauley human skin to be tanned to create leather, and provided him with human skin as payment, according to the indictment. Maclean contacted Pauley to confirm the shipment arrived because she “wanted to make sure it got to you and I don’t expect agents at my door,” the indictment stated.

Taylor is also accused of buying remains stolen from Harvard Medical School and selling them to buyers including Pauley, according to the indictment.

Between September 2018 and July 2021, Taylor transferred 39 electronic payments to a PayPal account operated by Denise Lodge totaling $37,355.56 in “payment for human remains stolen by Cedric Lodge from Harvard Medical School,” the indictment stated. One $1,000 payment in 2019 was sent with the memo “head number 7,” while a $200 payment in 2020 had the memo “braiiiiiins,” according to the indictment.

Pauley allegedly transferred 25 payments totaling $40,049.04 to Taylor via PayPal, according to the indictment, which did not specify what the payments were for.

“Some crimes defy understanding,” U.S. Attorney Gerard Karam said in a statement. “It is particularly egregious that so many of the victims here volunteered to allow their remains to be used to educate medical professionals and advance the interests of science and healing. For them and their families to be taken advantage of in the name of profit is appalling. With these charges, we are seeking to secure some measure of justice for all these victims.”

ABC News has reached out to Harvard Medical School for comment. Karam said the school, “which is also a victim here,” is cooperating in the investigation.

FBI Boston special agents arrested Cedric and Denise Lodge and Maclean on Wednesday without incident, the FBI said. Online records do not include attorney information for them. ABC News was unable to reach them for comment.

Taylor entered a not guilty plea on Wednesday, court records show. His attorney declined to comment to ABC News on the allegations.

Pauley is also implicated in another alleged human remains trafficking scheme involving the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock, according to his indictment.

He is accused of buying stolen remains from Candace Chapman Scott, who worked at a Little Rock mortuary and crematorium that had contracted with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences for cremation services for cadavers received through its anatomical gift program, according to the indictment.

Pauley is accused of advertising human remains for sale on Facebook and selling remains he purchased from Scott to buyers in various states, including Matthew Lampi, 52, of East Bethel, Minnesota, according to his indictment. Pauley and Lampi allegedly bought and sold from each other over an extended period of time and exchanged over $100,000 in online payments, prosecutors allege.

Lampi was also indicted this week on conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods charges in connection with his alleged dealings with Pauley.

Online court records do not include any attorney information for Lampi and Pauley. ABC News was unable to reach them for comment.

Scott was previously indicted in the Eastern District of Arkansas. She pleaded not guilty in April to multiple charges, including interstate transportation of stolen property and mail fraud.

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(INDIANOLA, Miss.) — The attorney for Greg Capers, the Mississippi police officer who was suspended for shooting and injuring 11-year-old Aderrien Murry, says the May 20 incident was unintentional.

“The shooting was not intentional, it was not reckless, and [Capers] wishes none of this happened. It was a pure accident,” attorney Michael S. Carr told “GMA3” co-anchor DeMarco Morgan in an interview that aired on “Good Morning America” on Wednesday.

Aderrien was shot in the chest by Capers in the early morning of May 20 after the boy called 911 when his mother’s ex-boyfriend showed up at their home. The boy’s mother, Nakala Murry, said she asked Aderrien to call police.

Following the shooting, Aderrien was rushed to the hospital where doctors discovered a bullet had collapsed his lung and cut his liver, according to the Murry family. Aderrien has since been released from the hospital.

Capers has not spoken publicly about the incident, instead speaking to ABC News through his attorney.

“Officer Capers is absolutely sorry. As to what happened to the young man is very, very sorry, and his feelings go out to the family,” Carr said.

Carr said that Capers has been with the Indianola Police Department for four years and was named officer of the year in 2021. He said that Capers “knew the child” prior to the incident because Indianola is a small town and he never wanted to hurt him.

Asked what led to the shooting, Carr declined to provide further details but called for the release of the body camera footage, claiming that it would clear the officer’s name.

Aderrien spoke about the harrowing experience in an exclusive interview with Morgan that aired on “GMA” and “GMA3” on May 30.

“I came out of the room like this,” Aderrien said with his hands above his head as he reflected on the incident in an interview with “GMA3” co-anchor DeMarco Morgan.

“It felt like a Taser, like a big punch to the chest,” he added.

Following the incident, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation launched an investigation.

Asked about the timeline of the investigation and the potential release of the body camera footage, the MBI told ABC News that this is an ongoing investigation and that the results will be turned over to the Mississippi Attorney General’s office. The state AG’s office did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment.

Capers was initially suspended with pay, according to Indianola Mayor Ken Featherstone, but on Monday the Indianola Board of Aldermen voted 4-1 to suspend the officer “without pay effective immediately,” according to Alderman Marvin Elder of Ward 4.

Carr said that Capers found out about the suspension on social media and was not given due process.

“We wish that the city would have given us an opportunity to speak on the issue,” he said.

The officer’s suspension came after the Murry family filed both a federal civil lawsuit and a criminal complaint against the officer.

The criminal complaint for aggravated assault was filed against Capers on June 5 by Nakala Murry.

Carr said that the affidavit is “flawed and inaccurate” and the next step is a probable cause hearing scheduled for Oct. 2.

The Murry family also filed a federal lawsuit on May 30 against the city and police in Mississippi federal court on behalf of Aderrien and his mother. The lawsuit, which ABC News has reviewed, alleges that Capers arrived at the home with his firearm drawn and that he fired at Aderrien without warning as the boy emerged from the room.

“This is a claim for negligence and excessive force,” said the complaint, which named the city of Indianola, Capers, Police Chief Ronald Sampson and John Does.

The lawsuit said, “… as a result of the defendants’ deliberate indifference, reckless disregard and gross negligence, plaintiffs sustained injuries and damages.”

The Indianola Police Department and the city of Indianola did not respond to ABC News’ requests for comment. ABC News has also attempted to reach the two other officers named in the lawsuit.

Meanwhile, Carr disputed the allegation that the shooting was “reckless” and called on the MBI to release the body camera video of the incident, which he claims will clear Capers’ name.

“[Officer Capers] is ready to have his name cleared,” Carr said.

Indianola Mayor Ken Featherstone addressed the “public outcry” over the incident in an interview with ABC News on May 30 and urged the residents of Indianola to remain “patient” as the MBI investigates.

Asked about a timeline for the release of the body camera video, Featherstone said that the city had a special meeting on the incident with the city aldermen and they decided not to release it yet due to “pending litigation.”

“We didn’t want to taint the process at all,” he said. “The board voted overwhelmingly to follow the advice of legal counsel.”

Featherstone didn’t immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment on Capers’ comments Wednesday.

ABC News’ Armando Garcia contributed to this report.

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(SURFSIDE, Fla.) — Nearly two years after the 12-story Champlain Towers South condominium complex collapsed, causing the deaths of 98 people in Surfside, Florida, plans were submitted Monday that call for another 12-story condominium building to be constructed on the oceanfront property where the catastrophe occurred.

DAMAC International, a company based in United Arab Emirates, said in a news release that the proposed “ultra-luxury boutique oceanfront development” would include 57 condominiums and two pools. The company released renderings of two possible designs for the building.

The Town of Surfside’s Planning Department confirmed to ABC News that the developer’s application was received Monday.

“DAMAC plans to commence construction sometime in 2024,” a spokesperson for the developer told ABC News.

The Surfside Planning Commission would need to approve the plans in order for DAMAC International to be allowed to proceed with the project. Surfside’s municipal government will first review the proposal and will eventually schedule a public hearing, but a meeting date has not yet been set.

“It’s a difficult issue because there’s the emotional aspect to it,” Surfside Mayor Shlomo Danzinger told ABC News. “We can’t deny a plan unless there’s a legal reason.”

Champlain Towers South opened in 1981 just north of Miami Beach and included 136 condominiums. The collapse of roughly half of the building occurred around 1:22 a.m. on June 24, 2021, and caused first responders from around the world to travel to South Florida to assist with the search and rescue efforts.

“While no work of architecture can ever remove the pain of the past, nor should it, a truly ambitious work of architecture can respect such a significant site,” Chris Lepine of Zaha Hadid Architects said in the press release. “It’s a great responsibility to be providing this vision for Surfside.”

Just over a year after the collapse, East Oceanside Development, LLC, a firm associated with DAMAC International, bought the property for $120 million, according to Miami-Dade County property records.

“I think we’d have all liked to see a memorial there and it turned into some kind of park, but that ship sailed a long time ago,” Danzinger said, adding that part of nearby 88th Street is now expected to be converted to a memorial park in at least a year.

The news of the development proposal comes as an exact cause of the collapse has still not been determined.

Investigators from the National Institute of Standards and Technology are expected to provide an update on their research during a meeting on Friday, but according to a NIST spokesperson, their investigation will not be completed until spring of 2024 and the resulting report will not be published until a year after that.

Meanwhile, Surfside officials, survivors and relatives of the victims are preparing to mark two years since the collapse. A torch will be lit in a public remembrance service at a park across the street from the property at 1:22 a.m. on June 24 and the victims’ names will be read after.

“We don’t want to forget,” Danzinger said. “We want to keep their memories alive.”

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(PHILADELPHIA) — Officials unveiled on Wednesday a plan to repair an elevated section of Interstate 95 in Philadelphia that collapsed when a tanker truck caught fire in the underpass.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said the “most efficient” way to get the impacted lanes reopened will be to backfill and pave over the Cottman Avenue underpass and then work to build a new bridge.

“Once complete, cars and trucks can return to this stretch of 95 and then we will work together to build a permanent bridge, while making sure we keep six lanes of traffic open at all times,” Shapiro said at a press conference.

A 24/7 livestream feed that will allow the public to watch the reconstruction in real time will be set up over the weekend, according to the governor.

Shapiro didn’t give a timeline on when the repaving of the underpass will be complete, but he stressed that it will be done “as quickly as possible.” The materials to fill the underpass will arrive on Thursday, he said.

“This is our championship,” he added. “We are ready to go and I am proud as hell to be on the team with all of these guys and gals standing behind me here today.”

The governor had told reporters on Sunday evening that “the complete rebuild” is expected “to take some number of months.”

The bridge collapsed on Sunday morning as a tanker truck carrying 8,500 gallons of gasoline attempted to navigate a left-hand turn after exiting at the Cottman Avenue offramp of I-95 in Pennsylvania’s largest city, according to officials. Losing control through its turn, the truck fell on its side and ruptured its own tank. Once ignited, the fuel burned at a high enough heat to structurally compromise the concrete and steel I-beams of the overpass, officials said.

The northbound lanes of the affected segment collapsed, while the southbound lanes are compromised and will also need to be replaced. Crews have since removed most of the collapsed structure along with the tanker truck that was trapped beneath, officials said. They are now working to demolish the structurally unsound southbound portion of the roadway. The full demolition will be finished by Thursday, according to Shapiro.

The Pennsylvania State Police said Monday that a body was recovered from the wreckage and turned over to the Philadelphia County Medical Examiner and Coroner. While authorities have yet to identify the remains, the family of Nathaniel Moody told ABC News that he was the driver of the tanker truck and had died in the crash. Moody leaves behind a son and two daughters, his family said.

I-95 is one of the busiest travel corridors in the United States and serves as the main north-south highway on the East Coast. An average of more than 160,000 vehicles travel across the impacted section in Philadelphia every day, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

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(NEW YORK) — A 28-year-old woman has been arrested for allegedly posing as a 17-year-old student and attending a Louisiana high school, authorities said.

Martha Jessenia Gutierrez-Serrano, 28, and her mother, Marta Elizeth Serrano-Alvarado, 46, both of Boutte, Louisiana, were each charged Tuesday with one count of injuring public records, the St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office said.

Serrano-Alvarado allegedly used a fraudulent passport and birth certificate to enroll her 28-year-daughter at Hahnville High School in Boutte during the 2022-2023 school year, according to the sheriff’s office.

School officials launched an investigation after getting “a tip that a female student, who was on record as being 17 years old, was in fact an adult possibly in her mid 20’s,” the sheriff’s office said. School officials then relayed their findings to the authorities on May 29, the sheriff’s office said.

St. Charles Parish Public Schools confirmed in a statement Tuesday that school officials notified the sheriff’s office that fake documents were used to enroll an adult at the high school. A school district spokesperson declined to comment on when the 28-year-old was allegedly enrolled or who submitted the tip to the school.

The district added that it “will enhance processes to determine the authenticity of enrollment documents for current and future students as well as modify policy and procedures as warranted.”

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(NEW YORK) — The South is bracing for severe weather on Wednesday, including strong tornadoes, powerful winds and large hail.

The bull’s-eye will be from Jackson, Mississippi, to Montgomery, Alabama, to Albany, Georgia, where winds could reach 80 mph or higher. But the severe weather could stretch as far west as eastern Texas and as far east as Birmingham, Alabama; Atlanta; Tallahassee, Florida; and Savannah, Georgia.

On Thursday, the threat for hail and winds will be in two pockets: one in Kansas and Oklahoma, and another along the Gulf Coast from Mississippi to Florida.

The South is also facing dangerous heat.

On Tuesday, McAllen, Texas, hit a record high of 103 degrees.

Alerts are in effect Wednesday from Florida to Louisiana to Texas, where temperatures could reach 98 degrees in Austin and 110 degrees in Loredo, Texas. The heat index — what temperature it feels like with humidity — could climb to a scorching 119 degrees.

On Thursday, the record heat will set in from Houston to New Orleans, with temperatures approaching 100 degrees.

By Friday, record highs are expected in San Antonio, Houston, Dallas, New Orleans and Miami, with a heat index close to 120 degrees.

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(PHILADELPHIA) — Officials are expected to unveil on Wednesday a plan to repair an elevated section of Interstate 95 in Philadelphia that collapsed when a tanker truck caught fire in the underpass.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation Mike Carroll, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney, Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt and other officials will provide an update on the coordinated response to the I-95 collapse during a press conference at 11 a.m. ET. They are set to announce a reconstruction plan along with a timeline, according to Philadelphia station WPVI-TV.

Shapiro had told reporters on Sunday evening that “the complete rebuild” is expected “to take some number of months.”

The section collapsed on Sunday morning as a tanker truck carrying 8,500 gallons of gasoline attempted to navigate a left-hand turn after exiting at the Cottman Avenue offramp of I-95 in Pennsylvania’s largest city, according to officials. Losing control through its turn, the truck fell on its side and ruptured its own tank. Once ignited, the fuel burned at a high enough heat to structurally compromise the concrete and steel I-beams of the overpass, officials said.

The northbound lanes of the affected segment collapsed, while the southbound lanes are compromised and will also need to be replaced. Crews have since removed most of the collapsed structure along with the tanker truck that was trapped beneath, officials said. They are now working to demolish the structurally unsound southbound portion of the roadway. The full demolition will likely be finished later this week, according to officials.

The Pennsylvania State Police said Monday that a body was recovered from the wreckage and turned over to the Philadelphia County Medical Examiner and Coroner. While authorities have yet to identify the remains, the family of Nathaniel Moody told ABC News that he was the driver of the tanker truck and had died in the crash. Moody leaves behind a son and two daughters, his family said.

I-95 is one of the busiest travel corridors in the United States and serves as the main north-south highway on the East Coast. An average of more than 160,000 vehicles travel across the impacted section in Philadelphia every day, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

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(HOUSTON) — A 4-year-old police K-9 named Aron with one-and-a-half years of experience on the force has died from heat exhaustion after being left in an air-conditioned patrol car that unexpectedly shut off when the officer was away from the vehicle.

The incident occurred on Monday in Houston, Texas, when the handler of the K-9 left the dog in a “running, air-conditioned patrol vehicle, which is necessary and common practice when the K-9 partner is not actively engaged in police work,” read a statement from the Houston Police Department announcing Aron’s death.

“When Aron’s police handler returned to the vehicle, it was discovered that the engine had been shut off and Aron was in distress,” authorities continued.

Aron was immediately transported to an emergency veterinarian clinic but ultimately succumbed to heat exhaustion.

Houston Police Department vehicles are “equipped with a system that notifies the handler, sounds the horn, activates cooling fans, and rolls down the car windows if for some reason the vehicle shuts down,” HPD said. “This did not happen in this instance.”

The Houston Police Department says it will now be investigating Aron’s death to figure out what exactly happened and how the vehicle malfunctioned so that a similar incident can be prevented from happening in the future and all HPD vehicles that transport K-9s will immediately be inspected prior to being deployed again to ensure that all of their systems are in good working order.

Said the Houston Police Department: “Please keep Aron’s handler and the entire K-9 team in your prayers as they mourn the loss of Aron.”

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(NEW YORK) — A man who was kayaking with his fiancée is presumed to have died after his vessel began sinking and disappeared into near-freezing water.

The kayaker — 37-year-old Travis Valenti from Massapequa, New York — was kayaking on Lake Crescent in Olympic National Park in Washington state last Friday at approximately 2:10 p.m. when his vessel suddenly began taking on water and his fiancée attempted to rescue him, according to a statement from the National Park Service detailing the incident.

“Mr. Valenti attempted to continue paddling but ultimately had to abandon his kayak and entered the water,” officials from NPS said. “As Mr. Valenti’s fiancée attempted rescue, her kayak overturned, resulting in her also entering the water.”

Valenti’s fiancée was able to swim to shore to alert staff from the nearby Log Cabin Resort that her partner had become submerged and was struggling to swim back. Neither of them were wearing a life jacket at the time of the incident.

Log Cabin resort staff immediately responded to the area where Valenti was last seen but were unable to locate him in the water.

“On-shore bystanders and Mr. Valenti’s fiancée assisted Rangers and personnel from Clallam County Fire District 2 with identifying the area he was last seen, which was estimated to be more than a quarter mile offshore and roughly 400-500 feet deep,” NPS said of the lake in Washington located about 200 miles by car to the northwest of Seattle. “Rangers searched for Mr. Valenti by vessel for more than 2-hours but were unable to locate him.”

A secondary search of the area was carried out the next day but Valenti still remains missing and is presumed dead.

Lake Crescent hovers around 50 degrees around this time of year due to its location and depth, and sudden immersion into cold water can immediately impact a person’s breathing as well as their ability to move their limbs, according to NPS.

“Swimmers are encouraged to use a buddy system,” NPS said following Valenti’s death. “Boaters should always wear a life jacket and understand the risks of recreating on large bodies of water, such as underwater hazards, wind, waves, and water temperature.”

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(NEW YORK) — Severe weather is possible for 16 million Americans across the Southern U.S. from Texas to South Carolina on Tuesday.

A severe thunderstorm watch was issued for parts of eastern Texas and northern Louisiana– from Tyler, Texas to Shreveport, Louisiana, through 6 p.m., local time on Tuesday — mainly for large hail and strong winds, according to experts.

Areas from Jackson, Mississippi, to Dothan, Alabama, are facing the highest threat of very large hail and damaging winds, with a low chance of tornadoes in the area, according to meteorologists.

Meteorologists said the stationary front will bring another round of severe storms from Louisiana to Georgia.

In addition to severe weather, temperatures are expected to hit triple digits in Texas this week, as a heat wave envelops part of the state.

A heat advisory has been issued for much of southern Texas as the heat index– the feels-like temperature– will soar over 110 degrees in certain areas, according to meteorologists.

The heat index in Corpus Christi will reach 112 degrees by Wednesday afternoon, while San Antonio’s heat index is forecast to be 106 degrees.

The heat index in Corpus Christi will reach 112 degrees by Wednesday afternoon, while San Antonio’s heat index is forecast to be 106 degrees.

The actual temperature is forecast to reach up to 105 degrees in some parts of Texas.

Midland is expected to reach 104 degrees on Thursday and Friday, Dallas is projected to hit 102 degrees on Friday and Saturday, and San Antonio will hit 105 degrees on Friday and 103 degrees on Saturday, according to meteorologists.

The extreme heat could adversely impact people’s health, meteorologists warned.

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