The author of a book chronicling the 1975 disappearance and murder of an 8-year-old Pennsylvania girl is crediting her writing with helping police catch a former priest who confessed to the crime.
Last October, Joanna Sullivan co-authored “The Tragedy of Gretchen Harrington Marple” — the story of the death of Gretchen Harrington, who went missing on her way to Bible school, and its impact on her hometown.
After the book was published, Sullivan said an informant who read it contacted police, believing that one of the interviewees, David Zandstra, 83, was behind the two attempted kidnappings in Marple and could be a person of interest in the cold case.
“The book was published, and we started hearing a few months later that they were actively looking at suspects. And lo and behold, it was someone he knew,” Sulivan told Fox News.
Zandstra, a former pastor at Trinity Church Chapel Christian Reformed Church, was arrested in July after he confessed to kidnapping Harrington and beating him to death, with his body found in Ridley Creek State Park.
David Zandstra, 83, a former pastor at Trinity Church Chapel Christian Reformed Church, has been arrested for kidnapping and killing Gretchen Harrington.AP
The 8-year-old girl disappeared while on her way to Bible camp in Marple Township in August 1975. The Delaware County District Attorney’s Office
Sullivan, who is now editor-in-chief of the Baltimore Business Journal, spoke to Zandstra about the case since he was responsible for helping transport children to Bible camp.
Zandstra, a husband and father of three, gave a short interview to Sullivan and co-author Mike Mathis, and he initially didn’t seem to remember much of the incident.
“I was driving a Volkswagen bus with a bunch of kids to take them to the church building, and when I got there, I think one of the teachers from Gretchen’s class asked me if I had seen Gretchen,” Zandstra is quoted as saying in the book.
“He said, ‘I thought Gretchen might be with you,’ and I said no. He said, ‘He’s not here,’” she added. “Either I called, or I went to Pastor Harrington’s house, and they confirmed that he had gone to walk the streets.
“And I said he’s not here. I must have at that point called the police.”
His brief appearance in the book, however, is enough for a woman to recall an incident where a girl in her class was nearly kidnapped twice by an unknown man.
Joanna Sullivan wrote a book detailing a hometown tragedy with her childhood friend Mike Mathis. amazon.com
The book was read by an informant who told police about two attempted kidnappings he believed Zandstra was behind.
The informant, who remains anonymous, wrote in his journal in 1975 that he believed Zandstra was behind the attempted kidnapping, and contacted officers investigating the cold case.
On July 17, police confronted Zandstra about his alleged involvement in the kidnapping, but he denied it. Police also pressed him on a statement from his daughter’s best friend, who told police he groped her in her sleep when she was just 10 years old.
During interrogation, Zandstra finally admitted to kidnapping Harrington and killing him when he refused to remove his clothes. He then tried to cover her body and fled the scene, according to the Delaware County District Attorney’s office.
Marple Township was rocked in 1975 when Gretchen Harrington was reported missing, with her body found a week later in a nearby park.
“David Zandstra is a monster. He is every parent’s worst nightmare,” DA Jack Stollsteimer said during a press conference after the arrest. “He killed the poor 8-year-old girl he knew and trusted.
“And then he acted as if he was a family friend, not only during the funeral and the period after, but for years.”
Sullivan said, his community is now looking forward to the culmination of the case that has haunted their town for the past 48 years.
“There is no happy ending in this case,” Sullivan said. “But, you know, we’re relieved that justice might be done – if he’s a murderer and convicted, he’ll pay for that crime.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
