Current:Home > ScamsRetired Georgia minister charged with murder in 1975 slaying of girl, 8, in Pennsylvania -Wealth Legacy Solutions
Retired Georgia minister charged with murder in 1975 slaying of girl, 8, in Pennsylvania
View
Date:2025-04-12 22:33:43
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A retired minister in Georgia has been charged with murder in the slaying of an 8-year-old girl whose remains were found in southeastern Pennsylvania almost a half-century ago.
David Zandstra, 83, of the Atlanta suburb of Marietta is charged with criminal homicide, first--, second- and third-degree murder, kidnapping of a minor and a related count in the 1975 death of Gretchen Harrington in Delaware County.
District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer told reporters Monday in the Delaware County seat of Media that the defendant was “a monster” and “every parent’s worst nightmare.”
Other news The Big Peanut once again reigns at the roadside in Georgia, after hurricane felled earlier goober Georgia’s Big Peanut is back. The roadside landmark along Interstate 75 in south Georgia was rededicated Thursday. What to stream this week: Post Malone, Zach Galifianakis, ‘This Fool,’ Thandiwe Newton and ‘Heels’ This week’s new entertainment releases include a new album from Post Malone, a movie starring Zach Galifianakis about the creation of the cute collectable Beanie Babies and a video game for the whole family with Disney Illusion Island. Thanks to DQ, Chase Elliott tries to defend NASCAR win at Pocono earned without leading a lap Chase Elliott left Pocono Raceway last year as a third-place finisher and learned when he landed in Georgia that he had been declared the race winner. Lamprecht shines in front of mentor Oosthuizen to lead the British Open as an amateur Christo Lamprecht’s first ever round at a British Open was one the South African amateur won’t quickly forget.“This is a man who is a remorseless child predator who acted as if he was a friend, a neighbor and a man of God, and he killed this poor little girl,” Stollsteimer said.
Having killed a child who knew and trusted him, he then “acted as if he was their family friend, not only during her burial and the period after that but for years,” the district attorney said.
Harrington, the daughter of a Presbyterian minister and his wife, disappeared in mid-August 1975 while walking from her Marple Township home to Bible camp at Trinity Church Chapel, where Zandstra was pastor. Her body was found two months later by a jogger in Ridley Creek State Park in Media.
Harrington, usually accompanied by her sisters but alone this day because of a recent birth in her family, was offered a ride by Zandstra, who was also the father of one of her best friends, Stollsteimer alleged.
“So when he offered her a ride in his car, of course she got in the car,” he said.
Zandstra took her to a wooded location and eventually struck her in the head, and believing her to be dead tried to cover her body, authorities said. Returning to his church, he “tried to act like nothing had happened,” and when her father, pastor of the nearby Reformed Presbyterian Church, called seeking to find her, Zandstra was the one to call police, Stollsteimer alleged.
Over ensuing days, hundreds of people searched nearby wooded areas, and authorities distributed more than 2,000 leaflets and set up a 24-hour hotline that took hundreds of calls, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. When the girl’s body was found in mid-October 1975, her clothing was “folded and in a neat pile” near her body with her underwear hanging from a tree branch “like a flag ... as if to call attention to the place,” the Inquirer reported at the time.
Stollsteimer said new information from an unnamed friend of the victim led state police to travel to Georgia and interview Zandstra, who authorities allege then confessed to the crime.
Trooper Eugene Tray said the defendant’s demeanor was “relieved” as if it was “a weight off his shoulders.” Stollsteimer said Zandstra, however, was fighting extradition from Georgia though the prosecutor vowed that he would be returned to face justice in Pennsylvania.
DNA from the defendant will be compared to material from open cases in Pennsylvania and elsewhere, authorities said. Zandstra lived in Texas and Georgia after leaving the commonwealth, they said. The Christian Reformed Church lists him as having ministered in New Jersey, California and Texas before retiring in 2005. Authorities said they were concerned that there may have been more victims and urged anyone with information to contact investigators.
Zandstra remained in custody in Georgia; a message was left Monday for a Pennsylvania attorney listed as representing him.
Gretchen Harrington’s family asked for privacy but said in a statement that they were “extremely hopeful” that the person responsible would be held accountable for taking her away from them, which they said “forever altered our family and we miss her every single day.”
“If you met Gretchen, you were instantly her friend. She exuded kindness to all and was sweet and gentle,” the family said. “Even now, when people share their memories of her, the first thing they talk about is how amazing she was and still is ... at just 8 years old, she had a lifelong impact on those around her.”
veryGood! (57)
Related
- NFL Week 15 picks straight up and against spread: Bills, Lions put No. 1 seed hopes on line
- Taylor Swift Reunites With Pregnant Brittany Mahomes in Sweet Moment at Chiefs Game
- Pregnant Gypsy Rose Blanchard Shares Glimpse at Baby’s “Adorable Morning Kicks”
- Padres and Dodgers continue to exchange barbs and accusations ahead of NLDS Game 3
- Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
- Charlie Puth Reveals “Unusual” Post-Wedding Plans With Wife Brooke Sansone
- Funny Halloween memes to keep you howling through spooky season 2024
- Jennifer Aniston’s Favorite Vital Proteins Collagen Powder Is Just $19 in a Prime Day Flash Sale
- Israel lets Palestinians go back to northern Gaza for first time in over a year as cease
- Funny Halloween memes to keep you howling through spooky season 2024
Ranking
- Selena Gomez's "Weird Uncles" Steve Martin and Martin Short React to Her Engagement
- What to know about Hurricane Milton as it speeds toward Florida
- How Tucson police handled a death like George Floyd’s when leaders thought it would never happen
- 2024-25 NHL season opens in North America with three games: How to watch
- New Mexico governor seeks funding to recycle fracking water, expand preschool, treat mental health
- Woman accusing Vince McMahon of sexual abuse asks WWE to waive confidentiality agreements
- Drake Bell Details His Emotional Rollercoaster 6 Months After Debut of Quiet on Set
- Ex-New Mexico state senator John Arthur Smith dies at 82
Recommendation
Current, future North Carolina governor’s challenge of power
LeBron James, Lakers look highly amused as fan is forcibly removed from arena
The Daily Money: America is hiring
Man falls to his death in Utah while canyoneering in Zion National Park
Don't let hackers fool you with a 'scam
Is this the Krusty Krab? No, this is Wendy's: New Krabby Patty collab debuts this week
How long does COVID live on surfaces? Experts answer your coronavirus FAQs.
Love Is Blind's Hannah Jiles Shares Before-and-After Look at Weight Loss Transformation