A former pastor with ties to Dallas was arrested on July 17 in Georgia in connection with the murder of an 8-year-old girl nearly 50 years ago.
During an interview with police, David Zandstra, 83, confessed to abducting and killing Gretchen Harrington in Marple, Pennsylvania.
“The murder of Gretchen Harrington has haunted members of law enforcement since that terrible day in August 1975,” said Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer in a press release. “The families of victims often say that their lives are forever altered into the ‘before’ time and the ‘after’ time.”
“Gretchen’s murder created a ‘before’ time and an ‘after’ time for an entire community — and for an entire county. This heinous act left a family and a community forever changed. At long last I can announce today that her killer — David Zandstra — has admitted to his crime. Justice has been a long time coming, but we are proud and grateful to finally be able to give the community an answer,” Stollsteimer added.
On the day of her abduction, Harrington left her home around 9:30 a.m. to walk to a Bible camp at Trinity Church Chapel Christian Reform Church, where Zandstra worked as the pastor.
Around 10 a.m., the children were expected to be transported by Zandstra to The Reformed Presbyterian Church, where Harrington’s father worked as the pastor, according to the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office.
Harrington did not make it to the secondary location, and her father quickly became concerned, leading Zandstra to call the Marple Police Department at 11:23 a.m. to report the disappearance.
Witnesses said they had seen Gretchen Harrington speaking with the driver of either a green station wagon or a two-tone Cadillac. Zandstra drove a green station wagon at the time, prompting an interview with police in October 1975, per the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office.
He denied seeing Harrington on the day she went missing and was released following the interview.
Harrington’s remains were discovered on October 14, 1975, inside Ridley Creek State Park.
Police spoke with a confidential informant, who was close friends with Zandstra’s daughter, on January 2, 2023, and discussed her experience growing up near Zandstra. The informant stated that she spent the night at the Zandstra family’s house when she was 10 years old and woke up to find Zandstra’s hand in her groin area, according to the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office.
Police traveled to Marietta, Georgia, where Zandstra now lives, and spoke with him about the allegations. He subsequently admitted to abducting and killing Harrington.
In addition to living in Georgia and Pennsylvania, Zandstra also resided for a time in Plano, Texas. Upon hearing the news, the Plano Police Department asked anyone with information about Zandstra to contact them.
If anyone has any info on David Zandstra and ties to Plano, TX please let us know. Apparently we have been listed in a news article as one of the places this monster could have lived. We will also be checking our records but as of right now we don’t have any information. @KHQA
— Plano Police (Texas) (@PlanoPoliceDept) July 24, 2023
Records from the Christian Reformed Church in North America indicate that Zandstra also worked in Dallas at Bethel Church, which was disbanded in 2004, from 1976 to 1983.
This places Zandstra’s arrival in Dallas in the year immediately following Harrington’s murder.
Zandstra was arrested and charged with criminal homicide, kidnapping of a minor, possessing an instrument of crime, and first, second, and third-degree murder, according to the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office.
He is currently being held without bond in Cobb County in Georgia.
Officials are currently working to extradite Zandstra to Pennsylvania. A DNA sample was collected and will be compared to open cases across the country.
“We’re going to convict him,” said Stollsteimer, per CBS News. “He’s going to die in jail and then he’s going to have to find out what the God he professes to believe in holds for those who are this evil to our children.”
