NewStats: 3,261,659 , 8,174,666 topics. Date: Friday, 30 May 2025 at 12:08 AM 1mq5c

A retired US church pastor who presided nearly half a century ago at the funeral of a kidnapped eight-year-old girl has been charged with her murder. Gretchen Harrington went missing in the Philadelphia suburb of Marple Township on the morning of 15 August 1975 while attending summer Bible camp

Earlier this year, an anonymous woman told investigators she believed her best friend's father was the culprit.

David Zandstra, 83, is now charged with murder and kidnapping of a minor.
"He is every parent's worst nightmare," Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer told reporters on Monday.
"He killed this poor eight-year-old girl he knew and who trusted him. And then, he acted as if he was a family friend, not only during her burial and the period after that, but for years."

Interest in the case was revived in part by a book published last year, called Marple's Gretchen Harrington Tragedy: Kidnapping, Murder and Innocence Lost in Suburban Philadelphia.

In 1975, Mr Zandstra was pastor at the Trinity Christian Reformed Church. Bible camps were held on its premises each morning and he would then transport the children to a second church.

But Gretchen never showed up at the Reformed Presbyterian Church, and it was Mr Zandstra himself who reported her disappearance to police that morning.
Her remains would be found in a nearby wooded area nearly two months later.
The suspect was a family friend of the Harringtons, helped search for her and even presided over the child's funeral, sources told CBS News, the BBC's US partner.

Investigators say Mr Zandstra had invited Gretchen into his car once she was out of view of her late father, who had watched her walk up the road from the family home.

A witness interviewed soon afterwards reported seeing the girl speak to the driver of a vehicle similar to Mr Zandstra's green Rambler station wagon.

But when interviewed by police at the time, the pastor denied having seen Gretchen that day.

In January this year, investigators spoke with the best friend of Mr Zandstra's daughter.
She told them she often slept over at their house and, at age 10, once woke to find the pastor groping her.

The woman also showed police a 1975 diary entry in which she wrote: "I think he might be the one who kidnapped Gretchen. I think it was Mr Z."

Mr Zandstra moved several times, living in California and Texas before his arrest last week in Georgia by Pennsylvania State Police, at which point police say he confessed to the crime.

The suspect is being held in a local jail and is due to be extradited to Pennsylvania.
Joanna Falcone Sullivan, who wrote Marple's Gretchen Harrington Tragedy, told the BBC she believes her book with co-author Mike Mathis helped surface new leads.

The writer said they interviewed Mr Zandstra for the book and he "sounded like he didn't everything that transpired that morning. His wife ed a lot better".
"We kind of chalked it up to age," Mrs Sullivan said.

She added: "The story has affected the community so much.
"This crime still comes up in the Facebook neighbourhood groups."

The state trooper to whom police say Mr Zandstra confessed his crime said on Monday the suspect seemed relieved.
"I don't know if he's sorry for what he did, but this is a weight off his shoulders for sure," Eugene Tray said.

In a statement, the Harrington family said the arrest felt like "one step closer to justice".
"If you met Gretchen, you were instantly her friend. She exuded kindness to all and was sweet and gentle," they wrote.

"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 eight years old, she had a lifelong impact on those around her."

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-66301562

Gargantuan gaga!

another DEVIL IN ROBE spotted!

He's dying in that penitentiary.

Chai..


Kokoro ti'njefo, idi efo l'owa.

Ant wey dey chop wood, na for inside wood e dey!

Lobarton.

I Don't Actually Believe This Is Justice, The Man Has Already Lived Out His Life, His Only Punishment Is In Hell

If it was Nigeria, 5he case would've been buried long ago.

Evil man. Really evil man.

Life of crime doesn't pay

US and crime na 5 and 6 dem like to dey marry themselves. Let the law take its due course. If he is found guilty let them place him on electric chair.

Na wa oOo , since 1975 , wonderful , if na Nigerian police sorry , dat matter don die

How the best friend find out?

Na person wey know person dey do am...

Religion shelters alot of diabolic people.

Evil everywhere.

The suspect was a family friend of the Harringtons, helped search for her and even presided over the child's funeral

No matter how far you run,
Karma will always locate you.
Karma has everyone address.

Akalia:
Religion shelters alot of diabolic people.

You can say that again.....

All shades of badness in one person

Delayed justice the heart of man is desperately wicked.

obedience4:


https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-66301562

Wow

Nawa. This is exact case of you know me you dey do me, you dey do me you dey pity me.
But why did they wait for over 45 years to start writing a book to reveal what they thought actually happened? Why wait for that long for an anonymous person to come out and start making a revelation. Hope the person is not his wife though cos she might know much of him than anyone else.

It's look very frightening. Evil genius. I believe his conscience is not rest now that he is closer to the grave.

The devil is a white man

Swissli:
I Don't Actually Believe This Is Justice, The Man Has Already Lived Out His Life, His Only Punishment Is In Hell

Ironically he may not go to hell in the end. His genune repentance will pave the way to heaven for him. He only will surfer physical punishment for his crime.

African christians think their ancestors are evil,,
If dem open white people book for una, una go apologize to our saintly ancestors.

Ok

The long arm of the law of the United States.

Kudos

Na the kind thing the most sophisticated tribe is known for.

Get his DNA, he may have the most sophisticated tribe in his lineage.