The former director of the donated-body program at the University of California at Los Angeles pleaded guilty today to charges stemming from his involvement in a lucrative scheme to sell body parts to medical, drug, and research companies, the Associated Press reported.

The former official, Henry G. Reid, who is 58, could face more than four years in state prison after pleading guilty in Los Angeles County Superior Court to one count of conspiracy to commit grand theft. The donated bodies he was accused of damaging or destroying from 1999 to 2004 netted more than $1-million, prosecutors said. They said he sold hundreds of body parts to a middleman, Ernest V. Nelson. Mr. Nelson then resold the parts to more than 20 medical and research companies.

Mr. Reid’s lawyer, Melvyn Sacks, said his client regretted his actions. “My client accepted responsibility for the mistake he made concerning his activities as director of the willed-body program at UCLA and is extremely remorseful about the situation,” Mr. Sacks said.

Under a plea deal, Mr. Reid agreed to cooperate in Mr. Nelson’s trial and to pay the university $100,000 to $1-million, with the exact amount to be determined by a judge.

UCLA officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment. They have said they overhauled the willed-body program to prevent further abuses.

UCLA is one of several medical schools where the sale of donated body parts has shaken donors’ confidence in recent years. —Katherine Mangan