David Zandstra, pastor charged in 1975 murder of Gretchen Harrington, to be extradited to Pennsylvania
DELAWARE COUNTY, Pa. (CBS) -- The pastor charged in the 1975 murder of 8-year-old Gretchen Harrington will return to Delaware County Thursday. David Zandstra was arrested in July, and charged with criminal homicide and first-degree murder in the more than 40-year-old cold case.
The 83-year-old was still working as a pastor in Marietta, Georgia, at the time of his arrest.
At the time of Harrington's disappearance and murder, Zandstra was a reverend at the young girl's church, Trinity Chapel on Lawrence Road. Prosecutors said Zandstra was a family friend and even helped search for her as hundreds aided to help find the little girl. Zandstra even presided at the 8-year-old's funeral, according to sources.
Now, 48 years later, he has since confessed to the killing that sent shockwaves through Broomall and Marple Township in 1975.
Marple Township Police Chief Brandon Graeff credited two Broomall natives and journalists, Mike Mathis and Joanna Falcone Sullivan, with helping revive the cold case.
The case has always haunted Sullivan, a 30-year veteran journalist, so she wrote the book detailing the ongoing investigation.
"I was stunned," Sullivan said following Zandstra's arrest. "The fact that this case is finally, potentially coming to a close it's very exciting to hear this news. It's still very sad, you know, we can't change what happened."
Investigators said Zandstra invited Harrington into his car as she walked from her house to bible school on the morning of Aug. 15, 1975. He allegedly confessed to asking her to take off her clothes and when she refused, he then beat her to death, dumping her remains in an area of Ridley Creek State Park. Her body was found two months later, police said.
Since his arrest, officials said Zandstra moved around to churches, including in Plano, Texas, and Marietta, Georgia, and is currently being investigated for other potential instances of child sex abuse.
