356: 100+ Skeletons Found in Man’s Home, Alabama House of Horrors & Nick Reiner Updates

Summary

Podcast Summary: Serialously with Annie Elise

Episode 356: 100+ Skeletons Found in Man’s Home, Alabama House of Horrors & Nick Reiner Updates
Release Date: January 15, 2026
Hosts: Annie Elise & Amy Colette

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Main Theme

This episode of Serialously dives into several chilling true crime stories making recent headlines, focusing on three unsettling cases: a massive skeleton hoard uncovered in Pennsylvania, an Alabama "house of horrors" where a 14-year-old survived a year on her own, and case updates involving the murder of the Tepe family as well as notable developments in the Nick Reiner case. Annie and Amy guide listeners through these narratives with their trademark blend of in-depth research, compassionate perspective, and candid commentary.

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Episode Breakdown & Key Segments

[07:34] Case Update: Tepe Family Murders (Ohio)

• Case Recap:
  • Shortly after Christmas, Spencer and Monique Tepe were found shot and killed in their home. Their two young children were also present but unharmed.
  • Investigation quickly turned to Monique's ex-husband, Michael McKee, who was arrested in Illinois after fleeing the scene.
• Investigative Notes:
  • The couple's marriage had ended nearly a decade ago with no public animosity, leading investigators to believe this act was targeted and planned.
  • “But sure enough, they did make an arrest, and that is who they arrested. They say that Michael shot both Monique and her current husband, Spencer, and then fled the state.” — Annie ([08:26])
• Looking Forward:
  • Annie promises a deep-dive episode forthcoming, citing extensive research into 911 calls and prior accusations against the suspect.

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[10:44] Case Update: Nick Reiner

• Case Summary:
  • Nick Reiner, accused of murdering his parents, has lost his high-profile attorney Alan Jackson, who released a vague statement about "circumstances beyond our control."
  • Jackson still commented that Nick is “not guilty under California law”—without further explanation.
• Analysis & Theories:
  • Annie suspects the withdrawal boils down to money: “My gut tells me it’s the money. I’m sure the siblings aren’t on board with paying for this high-price, fancy attorney.” ([11:38])
  • Speculation that the defense may pursue an insanity plea, citing rumors of mental health issues.
• Status:
  • Nick is now represented by a public defender; arraignment delayed to February.

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[17:38] Alabama House of Horrors – 14-Year-Old Abandoned for a Year

• Story Overview:
  • A 14-year-old girl in Mobile, Alabama was found wandering disoriented near a Dollar General. Employees reported she appeared malnourished, unwashed, and in distress.
  • “Employees noticed she appeared disoriented and unwell. And then they ended up contacting the authorities.” — Amy ([18:10])
• Investigation:
  • Deputies discovered she’d lived alone since February 2024 after her mother and stepfather moved to Florida, leaving her with seven dogs (one found dead) in extreme filth, with trash, feces, and an insect infestation.
  • Minimal oversight: communication was limited to Snapchat, occasional food deliveries arranged by the mother.
• Heartbreaking Details:
  • A handwritten note titled “How many times mom tells me she can’t pick me up!” with 87 tally marks was found in the home.
  • “It had a total of 87 tally marks, which investigators believe showed repeated promises from the mother that were just never kept.” — Amy ([21:19])
• Parental Excuse:
  • The mother claimed she left the girl behind because she didn’t want to abandon her animals, citing them as “service animals”—though no official records support this claim.
• Host Discussion:
  • The hosts ponder why school or neighbors didn’t notice, and whether the girl’s upbringing or attachment to animals prevented her from seeking help sooner.
  • “Was she not in school? Was she going to school dirty? Why did nobody call if she didn’t show up to school? Why weren’t those phone calls made?” — Annie ([24:02])
• Legal Update:
  • Both adults charged with child abuse and multiple counts of animal cruelty; investigation is ongoing.

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[32:28] Pennsylvania “House of a Hundred Corpses” — The Grave Robber Case

• Initial Discovery:
  • Police, investigating repeated burglaries at Mount Moriah Cemetery, spot a car containing human remains.
  • They apprehend Jonathan Gerlach, 34, who is carrying a burlap bag filled with mummified children’s remains and other bones.
• Search Uncovers:
  • Over 100 sets of human remains in Gerlach’s basement and storage unit—including skulls, mummified hands, and even a pacemaker.
  • “They walked into a horror movie come to life the other night. Guys, this is an unbelievable scene.” — District Attorney Tanner Rouse ([37:01])
• Market for Human Bones:
  • Digital evidence suggests Gerlach was selling or trading some remains online, pointing to an underground market for human bones.
  • “There is a huge market for weird ass shit on the Internet... there is a market for people who want to buy actual human remains or trade them.” — Annie ([35:08])
• Legal Status:
  • Gerlach faces over 100 counts related to abuse of a corpse, burglary, theft, and desecration, with $1 million bail.

Notable Quotes & Reactions

• “Detectives walked into a horror movie come to life.” — DA Tanner Rouse ([37:01])

• “How many families would go and visit their loved ones without knowing that these graves have already been violated?” — Annie ([39:23])

• The hosts puzzle over the legality and black-market of human remains, with Amy humorously admitted:

  • “If there’s this market, where do people normally get these bones?” ([41:10])

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Timestamps for Key Segments

| Time | Segment | |-----------|-------------------------------------------------| | 07:34 | Tepe Family Murders recap & update | | 10:44 | Nick Reiner attorney withdrawal & theories | | 17:38 | Alabama House of Horrors (14-year-old abandoned)| | 32:28 | 100+ Skeletons Discovered—PA Grave Robbing Case | | 37:01 | DA Rouse Press Conference on Skeleton Case | | 39:23 | Annie reflection on grave-robbing implications | | 40:08 | Hosts discuss legality, black market for bones |

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• Annie (on the skeleton house):
  “Walking into that home felt like stepping into a horror movie. Except this was obviously real life.” ([34:15])
• Amy (reflecting on abandonment):
  “What ultimately saved this girl's life was that the concerned employee chose not to turn a blind eye.” ([22:00])
• District Attorney Tanner Rouse:
  “Detectives walked into a horror movie come to life the other night. This is an unbelievable scene.” ([37:01])
• Annie, with a recurring reminder:
  “If you see something, say something.” ([22:00] and [44:36])

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Episode Tone & Style

• The hosts use a conversational, sometimes irreverent tone—a mixture of empathy for victims, disgust for perpetrators, curiosity, and a willingness to openly think through questions with listeners.
• Banter is friendly and colloquial; analogies and pop culture references are used when describing particularly grisly cases.
• The duo mix their own questions and theories throughout the factual recaps, inviting their community to weigh in on the open-ended aspects of each case.

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Closing Thoughts

Annie and Amy leave listeners with the key message to report suspicious or concerning situations—“Don’t be a freak!”—demonstrating their blend of humor and seriousness in the face of shocking stories. For those interested in detailed, well-researched, and candidly discussed true crime cases, this episode delivers a mix of updates, deep dives, and new mysteries that raise as many questions as they answer.

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To hear deep dives and ongoing coverage on these cases, subscribe to the Serialously feed and follow Annie Elise’s upcoming work—especially on the Tepe family murders and the “House of a Hundred Corpses” investigation.

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

Hey, true crime besties. Welcome back to an all new episode of Serial Asleep. Really quickly. Before we get started, guys, we. We noticed in the editing process that something was wrong with the cables on Amy's mic. So you will notice a little bit different audio level than usual. We have fixed it for episodes going forward, but if your ears are hating you in this episode, I am very, very sorry. Hopefully it's not so bad, but wanted to let you know what was going on. Hello.

[C]

Hello.

[B]

Hello. Welcome back to an all new episode of Serial as Lee with me, your host, Annie. E lease. I've also got co host in the building, Amy Colette. Hel. Hello. I feel like the last two weeks. Yeah, the last two weeks you haven't been on because last week I was sick and I was doing it literally from my toilet with norovirus. Off camera. Off camera. Don't worry, guys. Tmi. And then the week before that, we took like a little break because of the holidays. So I did the re release of the Candy Montgomery episode because now that Netflix has bought. What is it? HBO Go? Hbo Max, whatever the hell they're going by, it's now on Netflix and it was like trending. So I re released that case. So now you're back.

[D]

I haven't been here since our duet.

[B]

Oh, the duet. The question. The. The Christmas duet. Got it. Okay.

[D]

We actually got a lot more positive.

[B]

Response than I was expecting.

[D]

I was expecting to get dragged.

[B]

No, honestly, I know they're all you guys harmonize so well together. I'm all. Okay, first of all, we ain't singers.

[D]

Like to tell you that we have an album coming.

[B]

No. Oh, God, could you imagine? No, actually, sorry, guys, I know some of you hate when we just, like, banter and talk to each other, but I haven't even talked to you about this yet. I know. I sent you the TikTok. Speaking of podcasters who are singing the Toast. Oh, and the Masked Singer. So I have never watched the show the Masked Singer ever, but I've heard about it. But when Jenny McCarthy was on the Toast a few weeks ago, before there was rumors that Claudia was on, I remember listening and being like, that could be a fun, just, like, show to have on the TV and, like, see if you could guess who it is. I don't know much about it, but now it totally makes sense why she had Jenny McCarthy on, because it hasn't been confirmed. She is on the Masked Singer singing. I know that voice anywhere.

[D]

I did. Yeah, I saw a clip that she was actually on it, but I've heard her in the past on her podcast say that's like her dream. She would love to be on it. And yeah, she's been posting more of her singing, so maybe. Yeah.

[B]

So basically, guys, consider three weeks ago my formal audition for the Masked Singer. No, Just kidding. No. But also, I'm trying so hard to weasel my way into traders. Like, you have no idea. I need to call Derek and be like, I think I've even told Derek Hardy because he was on it. And I think I need to be like, look, and you'd, like, make the call and I'd be serving looks. Yeah, yeah, It'd be great. It'd be great. Okay. Anyway, now. Too much. Too much. I. You can tell it's a wild morning. Literally.

[D]

You've been on one with your Celsius.

[B]

I know. Okay, here's the thing. You guys know I'm a Diet Coke girly through and through. I tried Celsius for the very first time back in October when Jeremiah did the 100 mile marathon in Big Bear. One of the doctor friends who were with us had one and they're like, oh, do you want to try this? But like, be warned.

[D]

Energy to, like, be on the sideline.

[B]

Yeah. Just. Just to crew my husband during the marathon. I needed a boost of energy because that's what a low life sack of shit I am. No. So they gave me one and it was like the Coke flavor one. And. But they said they're like, be warned, you're going to be super jittery. It's like crack in a can. And I was like, well, I've heard about Celsius for a long time. Like, let me just try it. First of all, it tasted just like Diet Coke. Not just like, but pretty close where I was like, oh, okay. Like it's not like Red Bull. I could get on board with this. I didn't feel jittery, I didn't feel wired. But that's probably because I take like three cans of Diet Coke to my face a day and like my caffeine levels are already through the roof. However, here's my rationale, okay? This more, I don't drink coffee. Not sometimes. I will, but not very often. I usually am a tea drinker, but the tea I like is chai. A chai tea latte from Starbucks has like tons of calories in it. Isn't great for you. I'm not going to just crack open a Diet Coke at 7 in the morning even though I'm on vacation. Been there, done that, wrote the book, seen the movie, have done that. But like I'm not going to make that a daily habit where I just like going into 711 and getting a big gulp of Diet Coke. It honestly sounds really good. Like pause recording, let's go. But I was like the other day when we were on vacation, I was like, let me get a Celsius. It'll wake me up in my mind. I think it's clear liquid so it won't stain my teeth like Diet Coke or coffee. But it'll give me the same like boost of energy with caffeine that Diet Coke does. So I bought one. It must have been in Utah or I ordered one or whatever. So then Jeremiah goes grocery shopping yesterday and gets like 12 of them because he thinks now it's so Jeremiah. He thinks like, oh, because my wife has had Celsius once in her life. She loves them now. Let me. Which, bless his heart, but he also got all of the like, not flavors that I told him I liked. So this morning when I was like getting up and getting the house ready and getting the kids ready for school, I was like, I'm not going to order tea because I've already gained a lot of weight since vacation and like I'm trying to filter things out. I'm not going to crack open a Diet Coke. Let me crack open a Celsius. So now here I am at 9am cracking open this Celsius. We've already talked for about six minutes of pre episode banter that has nothing to do with true crime. Because I guess I am wired.

[D]

You're Chatty Cathy.

[B]

Moral of the story, it is crack in a can. So here I am in a tumbler.

[D]

One of our tumblers.

[B]

That's a good idea. But I don't know if it would still hit the same with, like, a straw, because you know how when you have a straw, it goes faster. Like, the intake is more aggressive, which is what I love for a fountain. Diet Coke, but, like, too much. It might be too much. So let me take a sip of my kiwi strawberry. Celsius. Not sponsored, but Celsius. Hit up your girl. I know. I do need a code. It's not that good.

[D]

It doesn't sound good if I'm being really honest.

[B]

It's not that good. So I don't know. We'll see where. We'll see where today takes us. I, like, end up recording, like, 12 episodes today. I'm just like. My eyes aren't even blinking. I'm just going for us. Okay, okay. Or let's get serious, guys. No. Okay. So today is obviously headline highlights, where we are going through all the different cases that are happening right now in the true crime world. And, well, I was kind of surprised in a happy way that there weren't a ton of cases to cover this week. I was like, oh, maybe we're, like, getting our together as, you know, the humankind. There are a lot of cases that have the same kind of thread weaved throughout them, which is very disturbing. But before we get into those new cases, let's do a couple updates really quick. So a lot of you guys have been requesting that I talk about this case, and we did talk a little bit about it last week on headline highlights, but it's the case that is breaking out of Ohio, and it is the Tepe case with the dentist and his wife who were found brutally murdered inside their home. So let me give you a quick little recap on this before I get into the updates. So right after Christmas, police responded to a home, and they found Spencer and Monique Tepe shot and killed inside. But then they realized even something more disturbing. Their two young kids were inside the house as they found their parents. But the kids, luckily, were alive. They had not been hurt. But at this point, everything pretty much shifted in the investigation because now you're not just talking about a double homicide. You're also talking about children who were there inside this family home and their parents just kind of killed and wiped out in a single night with a ton of unanswered questions left. So pretty quickly, the investigators started looking at Monique's ex husband, Michael McKee. He and Monique had been married from 2015 to 2017. So although not super recent, they were trying to see if there were any connections anywhere because this looked very deliberate, it looked very targeted. So they, of course, were going to look into people who were close with the couple. Right. So from everything that had been reported, their divorce was not messy at all. It was also a very short lived marriage. Two years. Right, Two years. Almost ten years ago now. There were no big public blowups, nothing that would, on the surface, immediately make you think that things could ever end up this way. But sure enough, they did make an arrest, and that is who they arrested. They say that Michael shot both Monique and her current husband, Spencer, and then fled the state. So he ended up being arrested in Illinois, where he was living at the time. And this was after investigators say that they had tracked him using a mix of surveillance footage, vehicle information and digital data that placed him at the family's home and also showed his movements afterwards. But like I said, prosecutors are calling it a very targeted, very intentional act, not random, not a break in gone wrong, something that was methodical, thought out and planned, which it makes you wonder not only what was the underlying motive that made him do this, but how long had that hatred and resentment been brewing if they had been divorced for almost, you know, just shy of a decade. This is something that must have been in motion for a while, I would imagine. And there we have been doing a lot of research in this. We have pulled so many documents, so much information. So, yes, a deep dive is coming very, very soon, and some of those questions will be answered. But he is now facing two counts of murder and he's also in the process of being extradited back to Ohio, which I just saw that the other day, he waived his right to extradition or whatever. So that's kind of where we're at with everything. But like I said, through our research, there is a lot below the line here regarding 911 calls that were made and accusations made well before the murders, some things from the past. So it's too much to lay out in a headline highlights episode. So the deep dive is coming. It will be here sooner than you think, probably within the next couple of days. So make sure if you are watching the video version of this, take a quick second, press the red subscribe button so that you don't miss when that comes out. And if you are listening to the audio version of this episode. Make sure wherever the little three dots in the corner are or whatever is going on, that you are following the podcast so that you don't miss that. Because it has become clear that there is so much more going on here. I mean, details, timelines, context. So much that we haven't even touched on or have started to unpack yet. So that is coming very soon. In another case update, I want to talk about the Nick Reiner case, because this case took a pretty unexpected turn last week. Or was it. Was it last week? Yeah, I guess it was end of last week. So, as you know, Nick Reiner is charged in the death of his parents. And literally right before he was supposed to be back in court, his defense attorney, Alan Jackson, suddenly just stepped away from the case. Which Alan Jackson, as a reminder, isn't just any attorney. It's the same guy who notoriously represented Karen Reed, Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacy, he used to be, I believe he used to be an LA prosecutor and then he changed over to a defense attorney. I'm pretty positive that that's his, you know, I guess you call it resume. I don't even know whatever. But Allen released a statement saying, quote, that there were circumstances beyond our control and that he just could not continue representing Nick. However, he didn't explain what that actually means, what those circumstances are. But what made it even stranger is that even after dropping him as a client, Allen still went out of his way to say that Nick is not guilty, specifically that he is not guilty under California law. But then he stopped short of giving any more detail. So this obviously raised a lot of eyebrows, right? First and foremost, why is he no longer representing him? Which my gut tells me it's the money. I'm sure the siblings aren't on board with paying for this high price. Fancy attorney. Obviously, we know Nick doesn't have a ton of money to his name either, so that's why the public defender is now representing him. But also, Alan Jackson's very carefully curated choice of words of him not being guilty under California law, when we also saw outside of the courthouse a couple of weeks ago when he said, don't jump to conclusions, there's a lot more to this. We don't know where this is going to go. We have heard of the rumors that Nick had suffered from schizophrenia and different mental health disorders and things like that. I think that they are going to say that he was clinically and legally insane at the time of these murders. That's just my guess. I'm not an attorney. I'm Not a doctor. But I think that that's what they are going to say and what they're going to try to prove that he wasn't in his right mind at the time of these murders so that under California law he cannot be held responsible and that he is not guilty of murder. So again, very carefully chosen words and I could be completely freaking wrong here, but that's where I'm going with this. That's what I am thinking. So like I said, there's been a lot of speculation that this whole thing just came down to money and that that's why Ellen Jackson isn no longer representing him. They think that maybe the family has cut any sort of financial support from Nick and you know that there's other things at play behind the scenes. But we also know that Alan Jackson is definitely not, you know, what you would call budget friendly in terms of his cost. He is a very high priced attorney. So I think that all of that really does align. So because of the last minute switch, as I mentioned, Nick is now being represented by the LA County Public Defender's office and his arraignment has been pushed back to February to give his new defense team team time to get up to speed, gather all the discovery, the evidence and you know, figure out their strategy. So we'll see what happens. We will see what the family says if it ends up being confirmed that this all does come down to, you know, financial support and what the defense, the new defense is going to now argue for Nick. But speaking of Alan Jackson, I don't know if any of you listening have watched yet and I don't know Amy, if you have watched. Over the weekend a new Lifetime movie came out about Karen Reed and it has my girl Katie Cassidy in it. She stars as Karen Reed.

[D]

Other homework too. There's so many docs.

[B]

Oh my God. Well, his and hers isn't. Yeah, is, is fiction but it's very good. I just finished it last night. Yeah, so the new Lifetime movie, I haven't had a chance to watch it yet but I have seen reaction clips out there and we're like Aiden, Turtle boy, the, you know, the guy who like really took the story and gave it a lot of legs. He's even featured in it. Not him himself but somebody like an actor portrays him like because he had such a big role in all of this. So I'm interested to watch it and see what kind of perspective they give. And I love Katie Cassidy. I think she's great. I never would have thought of her as being somebody to Play Karen.

[D]

But now I can kind of see it now that you said.

[B]

And they did great with like the makeup and the wig and all of that. She. So I don't know, like, I'm a sucker for Lifetime. I love Lifetime movies. Honestly. I have been a sucker since I was like too young to be like 20 years old and I would just watch lmn the Lifetime Movie Network on repeat and I saw every Lifetime movie that had ever aired. So maybe I need to get back to my roots and like watch more Lifetime.

[D]

I mean, I'm down to watch it.

[B]

Maybe that is. We should have an office watch party at lunch. Elizabeth. No, I'm just kidding. Okay, so yeah, we'll see what goes on with that. But those are the updates. Now, as I had said, the cases, the new cases that Amy and I are going to be sharing with you today. It's interesting because while there weren't as many to choose from, which is very, you know, happy, you know, like, that makes me feel good that, okay, great, there's not so much true crime out there right now. Maybe we're getting our together finally as like a nation, which we're obviously not. But they all have like the same undercurrent and it's like, like all true crime usually does, but like family, mother, stepfather, house of horrors, skeletons, like weird stuff. So I know you found this first one, so why don't and I don't even know much about it, so why don't you break it down for us?

[D]

Okay. Yeah. And today's I know we often say we have more questions than answers after researching some of these. And this one is similar only because I could kind of put myself at the age of this young girl. And I have some questions. So I'm interested to hear what you guys think. So this next one comes out of Mobile, Alabama, and it's just really heartbreaking to hear because it involves a 14 year old girl who was left behind by her mother and stepfather and forced to survive on her own for almost a year inside of a home that was filled with filth and animals and just super poor living conditions. And the whole time she was left alone. Her mother and stepfather were actually working in a completely different state. According to investigators, this came to light when the teenager was seen stumbling down the road outside of a Dollar General store in Mobile County. Employees noticed she appeared disoriented and unwell. And then they ended up contacting the authorities. And when the deputies arrived, the girl was reportedly complaining of dizziness and had a lot of stomach pa and so eventually she was taken to the hospital for evaluation. The welfare check would ultimately expose what law enforcement says was a year long abandonment. When deputies followed up at the home where the girl said she had lived, what they found was very disturbing. Authorities say the mobile home was an extremely unsanitary condition. And you can see in the photos that the floors were covered in dog feces. Urine trash was piled throughout the entire residence, and there was even an infestation of roaches and bugs. And inside the home, there were seven dogs. And not just seven dogs, but one that was found dead inside a closet. And animal control ended up removing all of the dogs that were found still alive inside the home. The girl had told investigators that she had been living completely alone since February 2024. Shortly after she turned 14. According to police, her mother and stepfather had moved out of the state, leaving her behind with the dogs. And she had absolutely no adult supervision.

[B]

Workers says she's dialed for help after.

[D]

Seeing the girl stumbling outside, and it.

[B]

Quickly turned into a child abuse investigation. Mobile county deputies responded to the Dollar General on Jarrett Road January 4th after worker Jessica Smitherman called, saying a young girl was staggering. Her stomach hurt and she kept passing out. Looked like she had not had a bath in months. She had dog hair all over her clothes. She smelt very bad. So I knew she needed some kind of help. The 14 year old was taken to the hospital where investigators learned she had been living alone in a mobile home since around her birthday last February.

[C]

The condition of the mobile home was just deplorable and not something that any human or even any animal should be living in.

[B]

Sheriff Paul Burch says deputies found urine, feces, trash, and seven dogs on the property, one dead, inside a closet.

[D]

And that's where the timeline becomes a little more alarming, because investigators say the girl reported that her last in person contact with her mother and stepfather was around Halloween, 2025, so months ago. Since then, she has only communicated with them through Snapchat messages. The girl said her mother would occasionally arrange food deliveries such as Walmart or DoorDash, but otherwise she was left to fend for herself, including caring for all of those animals inside that disgusting, filthy home. And inside the home, deputies also reportedly found a handwritten note, which this is absolutely heartbreaking, that painted a painful picture of what life looked like for this poor child. The note was titled, quote, how many times mom tells me that she can't pick me up, exclamation mark. And it had a total of 87 tally marks, which investigators believe showed repeated Promises from the mother that were just never kept. The girl's mother has been identified as Marcel Lynn Pertilla and her stepfather as Eugene Medrano. According to the Mobile County Sheriff's Office, the couple had been living and working in Pensacola, Florida, roughly about an hour away, while the girl was left alone in Alabama. When questioned, the mother claimed she left her daughter behind because the girl didn't want to move without her animals, which she had referred to as service animals. However, authorities said that it was unclear whether the dogs were legitimate service animals. Regardless, they emphasized that a minor can't legally be left alone in those conditions. Both adults were arrested and charged with child abuse and multiple counts of animal cruelty. They were booked into the county metro jail, and as of most recent reports, the investigation still remains active and additional charges have not been ruled out. Authorities have said what ultimately saved this girl's life was that the concerned employee chose not to turn a blind eye and actually made the call to authorities and otherwise this poor girl may have been continued living in these awful living conditions. And so that really saved her. And we always say, if you see something, say something. As with most cases involving minors, many details have not yet been released. What we know right now is just based on law enforcement and the court filings. Even at this early stage, the facts laid out by investigators raise serious questions about how a child could be left alone for this long and how so many of these warning signs left. Left unnoticed. And that's kind of where my questions came in, because I was thinking back to being 14, and a lot of my friends were left alone, you know, while their parents are at work or sometimes, like even on a vacation. They had an older sibling. And while I certainly couldn't have, like, sustained caring for myself or possibly all these animals, I think I would have been able to, like, keep things a little more sanitary or at least known to call for help.

[B]

Unless she was raised in those conditions.

[D]

That's kind of what I was.

[B]

And maybe she didn't. Yeah, maybe she didn't know any better. And I know they were only an hour away, even though technically it's a different state. But I wonder where. I know they. They had said that they were sending food deliveries here and there. Were they also giving her money? Because how was she paying for the surviving dogs food? I would imagine they probably never were groomed, and maybe that was also part of the bugs and the fleas and things like that. But was she not in school? Was she going to school? Was she going to school dirty? Why did nobody call if she didn't to school. Why weren't those phone calls made?

[D]

Like, why Communication primarily through social media.

[B]

Right.

[D]

The parents were doing something for work that like, did they not want to be tracked because they knew they shouldn't have left their daughter alone or because what they were doing?

[B]

Yeah. Why. Yeah, why communicate through Snapchat and like, I'm sorry.

[D]

So why the long period of time without any communication at all?

[B]

Right. It seems like they were kind of just. I mean, in my opinion, over being parents, like, they were like, fend for yourself. And then for them for the mom to say, well, she didn't want to leave behind her animals. I don't care. You are the parent. Like, you reel it in.

[D]

But I was wondering, is that also motivation of maybe why the girl didn't call? Because maybe she really did have an attachment to the animals and knew if.

[B]

Maybe she had to go that she.

[D]

Would be leaving them. And so I feel like there is a lot more questions. That's why I was asking. I'm curious to know what everyone thinks because I feel like there's a lot.

[B]

There's. Yeah. And because you're right, because she's a minor, it's not all going to be released right now. It'll come out and like, I hate this expression in drips and traps, but I know. I hate that expression. But like, it'll slowly start coming out, but it seems to me like, I don't know. I don't want to jump to conclusions, but it seems like deadbeat parents, they left her to go do their own thing, work far away, which if it's an hour away, also commute. Why do you need to live in another state? Like, why do you leave your daughter? Make the hour drive every day if you're working there. Yeah. A lot of questions. Was she in school? I don't know. It's. It's interesting.

[D]

I know because I feel like oftentimes you see people. I mean, I'm sure her being a minor was.

[B]

And you know, I like, I'm thinking there's a case. What is her name? Lacey Fletcher. I might be getting it confused with another case, but there was a similar house of horrors a couple of years ago. I think it was Lacy Fletcher. I'm not entirely sure. I know everybody's probably screaming right now in their car. It's this, Annie, it's this. But where their child was special needs, and that's why they left her, because they didn't want to take care of her. Not saying that this child was. However, if There were feces, urine, things like that. Either she grew up in those conditions and didn't know any better, or maybe there was some sort of element there and that's why she also needed service animals or things like that. And maybe that's why things got so out of control or unruly. I don't know.

[D]

I don't know. But when you look at those photos and you. It's just unbelievable that someone would know that their child is living in that condition because you know, as a parent, what your kids are capable of doing absolutely. For themselves. And regardless, that's far, far, far too long.

[B]

I feel bad denying Emmy Lou her third pack of chocolate muffins. Like, you know, happens. True. I know. She's so scary. Oh, my gosh. Awful. Okay, I've talked to you guys about this before, but before skims, underwear, bras, all of that, it honestly kind of just felt like an afterthought for me. I would spend my time picking out an outfit, then I would put on this bra that was super uncomfortable or underwear that, like, didn't sit right or would, like, low key, just, like, ruin my whole day because it was, like, ripping and bad quality, which I'm not trying to throw anybody under the bus, but I'm looking at you versus some pink colors. Read between the lines. I was, like, loyal through and through, never really realizing, like, oh, you don't have to stay with this brand. You can try something new. And Amy is actually the first one who ever told me about skims. And once I tried it about a year ago, I've never looked back. Skims just completely changed everything for me. 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Because they have everything from skin care to body care to fragrances. And it's all clean, effective, and it's made without a bunch of harsh stuff, which I know a lot of us try to avoid. But their hyaluronic acid serum is a lifesaver. It soaks in fast, it feels super lightweight, it gives you that plump, hydrated look that everybody's always chasing. And then you can layer on the dewy day cream on top of it. And it gives the softest glow without feeling greasy. It's almost like that glow where it's like, oh, you must be drinking 3 liters of water a day, which we all know I only drink diet Coke, so, I mean, thank you, Dime for that. But while you're there, you also have to check out their fragrances. If you haven't tried seven summers yet, it definitely went viral for a reason. It's like this warm, creamy, beautiful scent. Lots of people leave amazing five star reviews on it. You gotta check it out. Plus, all DAIM products are vegan, cruelty free, and made with total transparency. So no weird ingredients, just stuff that actually works. So if your skin is begging for hydration, head to dimebeauty.com for 20 off with code podcast20, that's dime beauty.com or you can also find dime on Amazon and Ulta. Your winter skin will thank you again. That is dime beauty.com code podcast20. Okay, so this next case, kind of a common thread, but I have been getting so many DMS comments, story forwards, tags like, you name it about this case. And honestly, it's one of those stories where the more you learn about it, the harder it is to, like, wrap your head around how this even not only happened, but how it went on for so long. So this involves a man named Jonathan Gurlach, 34 years old from Pennsylvania. And he is now accused of carrying out what authorities are calling one of the most disturbing and extensive grave robbing operations that they have ever seen. And what's wild is this case didn't just start with some, like, big, dramatic moment. It actually started very quietly, almost invisibly so. Police had been looking into repeated grave burglaries at Mount Moriah Cemetery, which is a massive historic cemetery just outside of Philadelphia. Vaults were being forced open, mausoleums were damaged, and in some cases, it even appeared that human remains were going missing. Missing. And at first, it wasn't clear at all who was responsible here. But after more than two dozen break ins, the investigators decided to step up surveillance to figure out what the hell was really going on here. They wanted to start watching who was coming and going from this cemetery. And that is when everything changed. During that surveillance, police noted a vehicle that had been parked nearby. And when they went to go take a closer look, they saw something in the back seat that immediately made it clear that this wasn't just vandalism or someone, you know, being in the military after hours. There were human remains inside this car. According to prosecutors, that single moment tied the entire string of grave burglaries to one single person. 34 year old Jonathan. So on January 6, 2026, police stopped Jonathan as he was walking back toward that same vehicle. This time, he was carrying a crowbar and this burlap bag. And inside that bag, authorities say that there were mummified remains of two small children, along with multiple skulls and other bones. So once he was taken into custody, the investigators then executed search warrants on his home and also a nearby storage unit that was in his name. And what they found there is what law enforcement has described as one of the most disturbing scenes they have ever encountered in Jonathan's basement and his storage unit. Authorities say that they uncovered more than 100 sets of human remains. I'm talking skulls, long bones, mummified hands and feet, decomposing torsos, some still even wearing jewelry on their body. And in at least one case, a pacemaker was still embedded inside the body.

[C]

John Paul with six. Abc, can you tell us a little bit more about when you found these skeletons in the house? Where were, were they? What condition were they in? What was he doing with them? So, John, a lot remains to be determined at this point. They were in the basement predominantly. Although, as you can imagine, with 100 remains, it was not as though they were in an isolated area. We don't know exactly what he was doing with them. Time will tell. They were in various states. Understand, some of these are 200 years old.

[B]

The district attorney later said that walking into that home felt like. Like stepping into a horror movie. Except this was obviously real life. It reminds me of that movie too. House of a Thousand Corpses. I think it's a Rob Zombie movie. It's also. Who does. What's the other one? I know you guys are screaming it. I'm gonna need to Google it after this. But they are like two of my favorite movies has like Rob Zombie, his wife and like the parents. It's so creepy and gross, but like, yeah, this is real life. So at this point, investigators realized they weren't dealing with just. Just some one off crime. They were dealing with something very systematic, something planned, ongoing. Police believe that many of these remains came from the Mount Moriah cemetery, which also dates back all the way to 1855. And this cemetery contains more than 150,000 burials. The cemetery has struggled with neglect and security issues for years, which makes it of course, very vulnerable. And this is something that investigators believe Jonathan really took advantage of. So you would think that, okay, this is disturbing enough, right? What a freak. Why on earth was he doing this? Like, is he some just like weird perv? Some weird like skeleton obsessor? What's going on? But as they kept digging into this, things then got even darker. Because court documents suggest that Jonathan may not have been keeping all of these remains for himself, Investigators actually uncovered digital evidence that indicated that some of these bones may have been sold or traded online. Because as we know, there is a huge market for weird ass shit on the Internet. And not only people trading, you know, organs or this or that, but people who want to buy actual human remains or trade them. And people online have since pointed to different posts in like, Oddity collector groups and images allegedly shared on social media that are images believed to show human remains taken from disturbed graves. And like I said, prosecutors have confirmed that some of the remains that were recovered are believed to belong to children. Which kind of adds this whole other sick and twisted layer, right? Even if there is a market for people who want to Buy human remains because they, you know, are fascinated or they're just freaks of nature. They want children's remains. That is so sick and twisted. Jonathan has admitted to breaking into dozens of graves, but authorities say that the sheer volume of remains that were found points to one of the most infamous, extensive grave robbing cases that they have ever seen. So he is now facing hundreds of criminal charges, including more than 100 counts related to abuse of a corpse, along with theft, burglary, desecration, and even more. He's being held on a $1 million bail and his preliminary hearing is scheduled for later this month.

[C]

Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Tanner Rouse. I'm the District Attorney of Delaware county. And we are here today because of the arrest of 34 year old Jonathan Gerlach of Ephrata, Pennsylvania. Over the course of the last several weeks, detectives from Yaden Borough as well as Delaware County CID became aware that from November 2025 up until two days ago, January 2026, Mount Moriah Cemetery had been burglarized by, at that point, an unknown individual. 26 separate mausoleums and or underground burial sites had been torn into and for lack of better word, desecrated Investigation took place. Yaden deserves a hell of a lot of credit on this for doing good old fashioned police work. Going through LPRs, tracking physical evidence, piecing together a suspect, cooperating with CID, we developed that suspect, we laid in wait, and we eventually watched and caught Mr. Gerlach as he desecrated yet another monument. As recently as two days ago, he was taken into custody. Search warrants were executed in his home in ephrata, where over 100 human skeletons were recovered. And that's in part at this point, we are still trying to figure out how many of those are complete and what exactly we are looking at. A separate storage locker was found to be in Mr. Gerlach possession. That also was in Ephrata. We found there eight more human remains. Very simply, detectives have recovered an awful lot of bones at this point. And we are still trying to piece together who they are, where they are from and how many we are looking at. And it's going to be quite some time before we have a final answer. He is now arrested. Bail has been set at a million dollars cash by Judge Williams. He is in on 26 counts of burglary, criminal trespass, and a host of other offenses. Kelly Wilson, who's handling our media affairs, he's going to pass out a complaint. So you guys have the complete list of charges at your disposal. Very simply, detectives walked into a horror movie come to life the other night. Guys, this is an unbelievable scene that no one involved, from myself to the detective, to the medical examiners that are now trying to piece together what they are looking at. Quite literally, none of them have ever seen anything like this before.

[B]

But what makes this case so beyond unsettling isn't just the number of charges or how graphic the details are, but it's the questions that it raises. Because how many families would go and visit their loved ones without knowing that these graves have already been violated and that their loved one wasn't even in there anymore? How long had this been happening before anybody noticed? And why would somebody collect and possibly sell human remains in the first place? I know there's a market for everything, as I said, but, like, come on. So we're still uncovering a lot of new details as this case develops, and there is so much going on here that has not been reported so far. So let me know if you want the deep dive, because I will do the legwork and get the answers.

[D]

I have a couple questions.

[B]

Oh, great. Hit me.

[D]

Okay, number one, when you say there's a market, which I'm obviously not surprised. There's a market for everything, for bones and things like that, Is that a black market, or can you legally buy bones? Obviously not that we're dug up illegally, but, like, if you had possession of bones, are you able to sell them.

[B]

Maybe for, like, a paleontologist?

[D]

I don't know, for educational purposes or research or whatever. Probably just have, like, people are fascinated with taxidermy. Like. Like, could you. Was my first question. Secondly, if someone passes away in your family or whatever, and you are the person who decides what happens with. Are you allowed to keep a body? Like, could you preserve the bones yourself?

[B]

I'm just thinking you probably could, but.

[D]

Like, not that you'd ever want. I'm just curious. There's a market. So I'm just thinking.

[B]

I'm taking you off my estate planning right now.

[D]

I'm just thinking, this guy is selling bones. Obviously, he's got some fetish thing probably going well.

[B]

Yeah, it's the money. I'm sure he's probably making money selling it.

[D]

Yeah. Yeah. But if there's this market, where do people normally get these bones?

[B]

My question probably, like, the black market.

[D]

Is my guess, illegally sourced, or do people sometimes not bury or cremate someone and they just have possession?

[B]

I hope nobody listening has the answer. Okay. Because I don't like any of that.

[D]

It's because, I mean, you donate things to science. And I don't know.

[B]

Okay, I. The dmv, you put the donor sticker of, like, I'll donate my organs. And I know that there's been rumors forever that, like, if you have that sticker, they won't save your life. Yeah. Which is. I don't know. I don't either. But, like, there's no sticker saying, take my bones and sell them on the black market. But there is the executor of your. I want my. I want to be cremated. No bones for you. Yeah. No, but there is a weird market for stuff like this. I did a ca. I covered a case maybe six months ago, and I don't know if you remember this, where there is a market where people were. Why not circumcising. What's the word I'm looking for? What's the word? Were you. Yes, thank you. I was having. Where they cat. Like, self castration.

[D]

Self castration.

[B]

Yes. And also where you would hire somebody to come and castrate you. Like, weird fetishes and weird groups on the Internet. Yeah. Or you keep it as a trophy.

[D]

You sell it legally.

[B]

I don't know. I don't want to talk about this anymore. Okay. Like, I'm tapping out. The Celsius isn't hitting enough for this conversation right now. Gosh. Okay, so that's what we've got for headline highlights today. What a heavy one. But like I said, don't forget, subscribe. Follow if you haven't already, because the deep dive into the Tepe family is coming, and I want to make sure you don't miss that, because so many of you guys have been messaging me about it. And look, if you want the deep dive into the house of a hundred corpses, I'll call it. I will do it for you because I love you, but I really hope you guys don't request it secretly. So that's what we've got for today. What else? I was gonna say. Oh, on Tuesday, we put out the episode of Aaron Caffey. If you're not familiar with that episode or that case, she is a teen who orchestrated her entire family's murder. It's pretty unbelievable. So that's on the 10 to Life feed. It's all housed on the same YouTube channel. But for my podcast listeners, just a friendly reminder, we have two podcasts. Seriously. And tend to life. So go check out that new episodes every Tuesday and then, yeah, I'll be back with you guys Monday with an all new case, or I think maybe actually tomorrow with a bonus episode. If you are if you listen on Apple if you sign up for Annie Elise plus you get access to about a hundred bonus episodes right now bonus cases and we do a new one every other Friday so they're exclusive on Apple and on Patreon. So you can do that either on Apple podcast app or patreon.com Annie Elise anything else?

[D]

Things that you cover that was a mouthful.

[B]

Okay, until the next one. Be nice. Don't kill people, don't sell any bones, don't rob any graves. And if you see something, say something that's a great one and just don't be a freak. Should that be a new motto like don't be a freak? That's it. Okay, bye.

[E]

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