(Trends Wide) — When FBI agents arrived at James Nott’s Kentucky apartment on Tuesday with a search warrant, they asked if anyone else was home.
“Just my dead friends,” Nott replied.
That’s what the FBI says, which in a criminal complaint details the 40 human skulls and other remains they found decorating Nott’s home, linking him to a network of people who allegedly illegally bought and sold human body parts, including the director of Harvard Medical School morgue, accused of stealing cadaver parts.
The skulls were scattered around Nott’s house; one had a bandana wrapped around his head and another was found on the mattress where he slept, according to the complaint. Agents also found spinal cords, femurs, hip bones and a bag from Harvard Medical School, according to the affidavit filed by the FBI.
Nott has not been charged with crimes related to the human remains. But he faces a federal charge of possession of a firearm by a person prohibited due to his status as a convicted felon.
In 2011, Nott pleaded guilty to possession of an unregistered destructive device after detonating cord, igniters, timed fuzes and other materials were found on him that could be used to assemble “a destructive device,” the complaint states.
Trends Wide reached out to Aaron Dyke, Nott’s public defender, for comment but has not received a response.
It all started last summer, when East Pennsboro, Pennsylvania, township police received a tip about possible human remains located at the home of a man named Jeremy Pauley, according to the complaint. Agents searched his home in Enola, Pennsylvania and found organs and skin, among other human remains, according to the FBI.
During the FBI investigation, Pauley told agents about a network of people who bought and sold stolen human body parts. The investigation revealed that one of those people was Cedric Lodge, who worked at a morgue at Harvard Medical School, where he allegedly stole body parts to sell online, according to the FBI.
Lodge was fired in May and faces federal charges for stealing, selling and shipping the body parts, according to an indictment filed last month in the US District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
Through Facebook messages, officials connected Nott to Pauley and the network of people allegedly involved in the illegal trade in body parts, according to the criminal complaint.
Nott used a Facebook account under the username “William Burke” where he posted human remains for sale in June, even sending Pauley images of skulls for sale last summer, according to the complaint.
“William Burke was a serial killer active in Edinburgh between 1827 and 1828 along with his partner, William Hare. Burke and Hare sold the bodies of their victims to Dr. Robert Knox, an influential professor in the Department of Anatomy at the University of Edinburgh “says the affidavit.
“I don’t mind paying a bit for store stock. Makes things look good. How much total for the couple and the last video you sent plus the columns?” Pauley wrote Nott in an exchange, according to the complaint.
Pauley was charged last month with violations related to the interstate transportation of stolen property and conspiracy. Pauley will plead guilty to the charges, according to Trends Wide affiliate WGAL. Trends Wide has reached out to Pauley’s attorney for comment but has not heard back.
Authorities say their search of Nott’s home in Mount Washington, Kentucky, also found multiple weapons, including an AK-47 rifle.
“It’s shocking. You never know who your neighbor is anymore,” Caroline Branum, a neighbor who lives across the street from Nott, told Trends Wide affiliate WLKY.
Nott is being held without bail and his arraignment is scheduled for August 4.
— Trends Wide’s Jessica Xing and Laura Ly contributed to this report.
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(Trends Wide) — When FBI agents arrived at James Nott’s Kentucky apartment on Tuesday with a search warrant, they asked if anyone else was home.
“Just my dead friends,” Nott replied.
That’s what the FBI says, which in a criminal complaint details the 40 human skulls and other remains they found decorating Nott’s home, linking him to a network of people who allegedly illegally bought and sold human body parts, including the director of Harvard Medical School morgue, accused of stealing cadaver parts.
The skulls were scattered around Nott’s house; one had a bandana wrapped around his head and another was found on the mattress where he slept, according to the complaint. Agents also found spinal cords, femurs, hip bones and a bag from Harvard Medical School, according to the affidavit filed by the FBI.
Nott has not been charged with crimes related to the human remains. But he faces a federal charge of possession of a firearm by a person prohibited due to his status as a convicted felon.
In 2011, Nott pleaded guilty to possession of an unregistered destructive device after detonating cord, igniters, timed fuzes and other materials were found on him that could be used to assemble “a destructive device,” the complaint states.
Trends Wide reached out to Aaron Dyke, Nott’s public defender, for comment but has not received a response.
It all started last summer, when East Pennsboro, Pennsylvania, township police received a tip about possible human remains located at the home of a man named Jeremy Pauley, according to the complaint. Agents searched his home in Enola, Pennsylvania and found organs and skin, among other human remains, according to the FBI.
During the FBI investigation, Pauley told agents about a network of people who bought and sold stolen human body parts. The investigation revealed that one of those people was Cedric Lodge, who worked at a morgue at Harvard Medical School, where he allegedly stole body parts to sell online, according to the FBI.
Lodge was fired in May and faces federal charges for stealing, selling and shipping the body parts, according to an indictment filed last month in the US District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
Through Facebook messages, officials connected Nott to Pauley and the network of people allegedly involved in the illegal trade in body parts, according to the criminal complaint.
Nott used a Facebook account under the username “William Burke” where he posted human remains for sale in June, even sending Pauley images of skulls for sale last summer, according to the complaint.
“William Burke was a serial killer active in Edinburgh between 1827 and 1828 along with his partner, William Hare. Burke and Hare sold the bodies of their victims to Dr. Robert Knox, an influential professor in the Department of Anatomy at the University of Edinburgh “says the affidavit.
“I don’t mind paying a bit for store stock. Makes things look good. How much total for the couple and the last video you sent plus the columns?” Pauley wrote Nott in an exchange, according to the complaint.
Pauley was charged last month with violations related to the interstate transportation of stolen property and conspiracy. Pauley will plead guilty to the charges, according to Trends Wide affiliate WGAL. Trends Wide has reached out to Pauley’s attorney for comment but has not heard back.
Authorities say their search of Nott’s home in Mount Washington, Kentucky, also found multiple weapons, including an AK-47 rifle.
“It’s shocking. You never know who your neighbor is anymore,” Caroline Branum, a neighbor who lives across the street from Nott, told Trends Wide affiliate WLKY.
Nott is being held without bail and his arraignment is scheduled for August 4.
— Trends Wide’s Jessica Xing and Laura Ly contributed to this report.
