Years after his death, Nick Pichowicz’s family learned that his body was among those sold in a cadaver trafficking scheme at Harvard Medical School.Photo:Darlene Lynch
Darlene Lynch
Nick Pichowicz dropped out of school in the eighth grade to work on his family’s farm. But he was a passionate life-long learner, who retired as a deputy sheriff in Rockingham County, N.H., got his pilot’s license, bought and flew his own 4-passenger Stinson airplane and before he died in 2019, asked that his remains be dedicated to Harvard Medical School for scientific research and education.
“He looked up to this prestigious school, and he and my mom wanted to donate to science to help other people,” their daughter, Darlene Lynch, 60, tells PEOPLE. “That was always their wish, so we honored their wish.”
The Lodges and Taylor, along with Katrina Maclean, 44, and Mathew Lampi, 52, are charged with conspiracy and interstate transport of stolen goods. If found guilty, they could face up to 15 years behind bars. Jeremy Pauley, 41, is charged with criminal information and Candace Chapman Scott, of Little Rock, Ark., separately faces charges, which include the sale of the corpses of two stillborn babies. No defense attorneys for the suspects have been listed on online court records at this time.
“Some crimes defy understanding,” United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam said in astatement. “The theft and trafficking of human remains strikes at the very essence of what makes us human. 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.”
The Pichowicz family called twice to determine if their dad was on the list of stolen remains, Lynch said: “because we wanted to make sure it was right. We were hoping it wasn’t.”
Nick and Joan Pichowicz both donated their bodies to Harvard Medical School, following their deaths in 2019 and 2023, respectively.Darlene Lynch
Married for 66 years, Pichowicz and his wife, Joan, were a united team, raising five kids. They both retired as law enforcement officers. Joan, a police officer in their hometown of Plaistow, was known for taking care of her community — taking in runaway teenagers and nursing stray animals back to health. “Her door was always open to help anybody, for any reason,” Lynch said. “No judgment.”
The couple agreed on all the big things, including how they wanted to help people even after their deaths, Lynch said. When Joan died this March, her wish was to follow her husband to Harvard Medical School.
Lynch said she has called the school to determine how to get her mother’s body returned — but has not heard back. “We’re trying to get her back,” Lynch said, her voice cracking. “We just want some relief — relief in getting my mom back. We just want to bury her next to my dad.”
Lynch said the family has lost faith in the cause her parents once believed in. “Harvard should’ve had more security, oversight and protocols,” she said. “I mean, we give them the bodies of our loved ones, thinking, trusting that it’s for the good.”
Joan Pichowicz, who died in March, also donated her body to Harvard Medical School. Now, after her husband’s body was stolen from the institution, their children are fighting to get her back, saying they have lost faith in the school.Darlene Lynch
Lynch learned of the investigation Wednesday, after seeing a local news article following the release of the indictment. She was disappointed the family did not hear from authorities directly.
“Even now I get this nauseous feeling,” she said of learning what happened to her father. “When I first heard about it, I wanted to throw up. It’s just sickening that people can do this. It’s crazy, messed up, unimaginable.”
Now, Lynch said, the family is grieving twice: Once for their parents’ deaths and again for the way in which their final wishes were not kept.
“We want to get his parts back, whatever that means,” Lynch said of her father. “And the ashes we have — are they him?”
source: people.com
