Every Town - The Worst Crime Imaginable: 43 Years Later, This Pastor Finally Got Caught For His Sins

Episode Date: April 12, 2024

The real sinister stories pop up in otherwise safe towns, and are committed by friends, family members and those trusted in the community. Back in 1975 Marple Township In Pennsylvania was a wonderful place to raise a family and a great place for kids to play….. and one person, who walked among them was a predator who saw this as the perfect opportunity to catch his prey and get away with it. 👀 Watch This Episode On Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/scarymysteries 🎧 Our Other Podcast Scary Mysteries: https://open.spotify.com/show/3ZooEZMoZ421WdsOVJhVkT 💀 Exclusive Videos, Podcasts & Perks: https://www.patreon.com/scarymysteries  👁 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andrew.fitzg 👁 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewfitzgerald 👁 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scarymysteriesofficial 🗣 Business Inquiries, questions and comments hit us up at [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Everytown has a dark side. The most disturbing true crime stories are not necessarily the ones that are the most popular. They're the ones that happen in small towns to everyday people. And a lot of the times, unless you look for them or live in the place where they occurred, you'll never even know they happen. The scariest crimes aren't the ones about a psychopath who buried bodies underneath his house and dressed like a clown. They're not about the man from Milwaukee. The real sinister stories pop up in otherwise safe towns. and are committed by friends, family members, and those trusted in the community.

Back in 1975, Marple Township in Pennsylvania was a wonderful town to raise a family and a great place for kids to play. And one person, walked among them, was a predator who saw this as the perfect opportunity to catch his prey and get away with it. Hey, everyone, it's Andrew, and thanks so much for tuning into this week's episode of Everytown. but today we bring you the story of Gretchen Harrington. By the end of it, I'll have you thinking twice about your entire world as you know it, wondering if you really should be putting all that trust and faith in those who have been put in charge of our lives. Because make no mistake about it, any position of power naturally tends to attract some bad apples, and those who seek to take advantage because it's in those seats, high above the rest of us,

that a person can literally get away with murder and much more. Today's case was ice cold for almost 50 years, until one woman, going through her old belongings, began to recall some twisted things that happened to her when she was just a kid. And that busts this case wide open. All signs pointed to one trusted friend and community member as the culprit of a vicious crime. Let's head over to Pennsylvania and dig into this story

that changed the very fabric of the safe haven of Marple Township forever. Today, middle-class houses are lined up and down the streets of Marple Township, which is a town that sits just west of Philadelphia. Like many suburbs, it's boomed over the past 50 years. There's a fair field and in-sweets in town. A T.J. Max, a dollar store, you get the idea. But beyond all the developmental growth, The biggest change overall in this place is one that can't really be measured.

It's more of a feeling than anything else. An uneasiness that the community doesn't know how to put into words. Many might not even really know why it's there in the first place. But in certain towns, when tragedy occurs, much like what happened to 8-year-old Gretchen Harrington here in Marple, a darkness wherever seeps into every corner of the streets, and there's just no way to wash it away. way. And there was life before the incident, usually a simpler one, and then life after it, a much sadder one. Over time, more towns have gotten their taste of it as more tragedies take place, and it's all led to an

overall air of distrust among people, even those we know and call our friends. Nowadays, we like to put labels out there, calling people helicopter parents when they want to watch over their children, or We give general blanket statements that the world's just gone soft, and maybe that's right, but also maybe there's a good reason for it. And maybe that trust that once existed before the tragedy has been shattered time and time again, and now we find ourselves unable to get it back. I've said it before, but back in the day, kids could roam the streets, walk around their neighborhoods without fear.

Sleepovers at friends' houses were completely the norm. and no one thought twice about them. Today, you won't find an eight-year-old walking alone. A lot of people are weary about letting their kids spend a night, even at a close friend's house, because they don't know who's going to be coming and going from that home, be it an older brother or sister, uncle perhaps, maybe even the parents themselves.

And they fear that a predator might be lurking in their midst, so better just keep your kids safe under your roof. It is a double-edged sword, really. A catch-22, but it's our reality. I believe it's because of the stories we've all heard, like the one we have for you right now, but have molded our minds to be this way. August 15th of 1975 was an exciting day over at the Harrington House,

located on Lawrence Road and Marple Township. The head of the household, Harold, was a pastor in town, and a well-liked one at that. His wife, Ina, was going to be bringing home their newborn baby girl Jessica that day from the hospital. So, excitement was in the air. This would be the fourth child in the family and the fourth girl. And there was Sister Zoe and Anne and Gretchen, up until a few days ago, was the youngest of the kids. In the heart of the summer, being children of a pastor, the girls all attended a summer camp that was for Bible studies.

It took place just up the road from their house at the Trinity Christian Reconstian. Reformed Church, which still sits there today. Trinity was run by Pastor David Zanstra, who was good friends with the Harrington family. In the mornings, the kids would show up, hang out there and do whatever you do at Bible camp, read passages, have wreck time, and in the early afternoon they all moved on over to another church, and this one was run by Harold, and they'd do more the same before eventually letting the kids out to go enjoy the rest of their summer days. On any other morning, the three Harrington sisters would all walk together on the short track, but all of them were eagerly awaiting their new baby sister's arrival, and so

they planned to skip Bible camp just for that one day. Although Gretchen was a little bit on the fence about not going, because so far, she had a perfect attendance record, and while that might seem trivial to any grown-up, when you're younger, those kinds of accomplishments are things to be proud of and build off of. And Harold, being a supportive dad, encouraged her to go to camp that day and agreed she shouldn't skip out. The baby, after all, would be there when she got back later that afternoon, so she could meet her then.

At around 9 a.m., Gretchen then headed out on the solo track, but she never made it to Trinity Church. She never did get to meet her younger sister. At around noon, all the kids from Pastor Zanstra's camp were shuttled to her. over the second location, and everyone was there, except for Gretchen. When Harold asked where she was, Zanstra told him that she never showed up in the morning, that he thought all the girls were staying at home to meet baby Jessica. Immediately Harold told Zanstra to call the police and tell them what was happening, and his little girl was missing. Gretchen was best friends with Zanstra's daughter,

so they were like an extended family, and Harold entrusted the man to handle that while he figured out what to do next. Zanstra rushed the nearest phone inside, and then he alerted the police. And this tight-knit community, word spread fast, and immediately people began searching. The police and the Harringtons and the Zanstra's, and then more and more people joined in trying to figure out where Gretchen was. What was supposed to be a joyous day for the Harringtons quickly morphed into a living hell. That evening, with still no sign of her showing up, Zanstra and his wife Margie headed over to their friends home to show support. Margie cooked up some food and brought it over for everyone.

She remembers that night with Ina holding her precious little newborn, putting on a brave front for her family. She was keeping a cool head about it all, not panicking. Margie remembers thinking it was either that or she was in shock at the whole situation, which easily could have been the case as well. An eight-year-old, especially one as responsible as Gretchen, doesn't just not show up to Bible camp. I mean, it was her sole reason for going in the first place. She wanted that perfect attendance. Police in the Harrington spoke with everyone in the neighborhood trying to get any sort of clue.

They talked to all their friends and their families, but no one had anything to offer. The following day, August 16th was a Saturday, which meant everyone in that town got hands-on in the search. The normal scenes of kids riding bikes down the street were replaced with groups of adults combing the areas, looking behind every house and shed and inside every swimming pool. The woods were scanned thoroughly, particularly the creek behind the Harrington's home. The police helicopter was making circles above, and the longer this all went on, the more uncertainty and dread washed over everyone. The reality was slowly sinking in that they were all actually looking for a young,

child who didn't wander off, didn't fall and hurt themselves. Gretchen was just gone. And the idea that a person did something to her was becoming a very morbid possibility. Everyone was asking who took her and why, but most importantly, did they harm her? As flyers with that innocent smile from Gretchen's school picture were being plastered all around Marple Township and the surrounding towns, days painfully passed by. and people began to become paranoid at the idea that a monster walked among them. They double-checked their locks at night before bed, and kids now play close to home and stayed on their property.

One of them reflected back years later, saying that after Gretchen disappeared, that was the last time he was ever allowed to walk alone again. Girls with pretty long hair, chopped it down short, so I had a glance from afar. They looked like a boy, and maybe that would keep them safe. Everyone did whatever they could think of to keep that predator away. Many people were interviewed in question, of course. And some who saw Gretchen walking that morning said they saw a green station wagon in the area, but anyone with a car like that was questioned and released,

so that didn't lead to anything substantial. By September, the new school year started. Zoe and Ann tried the best they could to get through it, but without their little sister around, things were off. The other students felt sorry for the one's vibrant Harringtons who now walked the halls with their heads down. The leaves would begin to change color by October and life in the Harrington home was somber. They, of course, hadn't given up hope in finding their daughter, but deep down they knew that at this point, they were likely just looking for the body.

Almost exactly two months of the day since she had vanished. A warm October 14th day over at Ridley Creek State Park, A jogger enjoying the weather ran right past a piece of bone they noticed sticking up from the dirt just off the beaten trail. They stopped to take a closer look and that's when they realized that at the base of a tree with a skeletal remains of a human being. At State Park was about 20 minutes away from the Harrington home. Police converged on the scene and at this point, they knew exactly what Gretchen was wearing the day she went missing. So almost immediately they realized who the body belonged to. Gretchen's body was mostly decomposed after two months, but the clothes were distinct and that her mother had sown them for as she had made lots of clothes for her kids.

The Harringtons were brought in and they had to identify the mud-soaked shirt as they burst into tears and prayed. Dental records would officially confirm that this was the body of their little girl. The autopsy revealed that her skull had been fractured in multiple places due to blunt force trauma. At Gretchen's funeral, both her father and Pastor Zanstra spoke of her, at least now being at peace with God. A hero also had something to say about her killer stating, Her murderer is in terrible bondage. The world is filled with unspeakable evil because of the wickedness of the human, who knows the truth but will not accept it.

And for a little while after the funeral, tips came pouring in more than ever. People telling the police to look into this guy or that family, family member, but all of that was more of a knee-jerk reaction to the entire situation than anything else. There was more than just desire. There was a need to get closure on this heinous crime to get peace of mind. But just because you want something doesn't mean you're going to get it. In the end, everyone just had to live with the unsolved mystery and move on with their lives

the best they could. Every year around the anniversary of her disappearance, people would talk about Gretchen again. They couldn't believe it had been a whole year, a whole five years, and a whole decade. But with each anniversary passing, the time spent chatting about the girl got smaller and smaller until it essentially stopped altogether. Gretchen's sisters would go on to high school and college and start their own families. The haunting truth as to what happened to Gretchen was never revealed, that is, until the spring of 2003. 48 years after the fact, when the case blew wide open and finally the truth was revealed.

An old diary from a woman we'll call Sarah was found in an old box. Sarah was 10 years old back in 1975, and she grew up in Havertown, which was just east of Marple Township. She also happened to be good friends with one of David Zanstra's daughters, and from time to time would spend the night over there. She contacted police in the spring of 2022 to tell them about how she was going through that diary when a wave of emotions and memories came flooding back to her. She was just a kid during the height of Gretchen's case. At the time, she felt she couldn't do anything to help, but now, at 56 years old, she had a much different outlook. As I remembered how one night while sleeping at Zanstra, she woke up in the middle of the night

to a hand touching her. She stirred awake and turned around to find Pastor Zanstra with his hands below her waist. He quickly backed away and walked off and half asleep Sarah didn't know what was going on and just went back to bed. In the morning, she mentioned it to her friend. Zanstra's daughter said something along the lines of, he does that sometimes and then just quickly changed the subject. And Sarah told her own parents about the experience and they stopped letting her hands. hang out over there. But interestingly, this event took place just a few weeks before Gretchen would go

missing. But beyond just this morbid memory, it was a diary entry she had wrote all those years back that grabbed her attention. There had been another incident with a girl named Holly in the neighborhood a few months after Gretchen disappeared, and she had apparently almost been abducted off the street. This was nothing that ever made it to the police, but it was one of those weird incidents that got talked about around town. A scary moment in time, and in response to hearing the news, Sarah wrote down, Guess what? A man tried to kidnap Holly twice.

It's a secret, so I can't tell anyone, but I think he might be the one who kidnapped Gretchen. I think it was Mr. Z. The Z, meaning Zanstra. Sarah hoped that maybe this would help knock something loose, and it did more than just that. With Sarah bringing this information to light, the least look at. back at their cold case files on Gretchen, and sure enough, back in 75, Zanstra was brought on down to the police station for questioning. See, back then, he drove a green rambler station wagon, which was a similar style car to the ones that witnesses had said they had seen in the neighborhood

the day Gretchen were missing. But of course, being a man of the cloth, he was easily able to persuade police that he had nothing to do with anything, and so they let him walk free. After a little more digging, and this was an oversight to say the least at the time, but while being questioned, Zanstra actually described the exact pair of shorts that Gretchen was wearing the day she disappeared, but that made no sense because he claimed to have never seen her at all that day. Sergeant Nick Coffin of the Marple PD couldn't believe what he was seeing. So he began looking into Zanstra and wanting to track him down. They found that before setting his roots down in Marple Township, Zanstra worked.

out of a church in Flanders, New Jersey. Not even a year after Gretchen's body was discovered, he moved his whole family down to Plano, Texas, where they stayed for seven years. Then it was on to the Living Faith Community Church in San Diego, followed by a stint in Fairfield, California, before he retired in 2005 at the age of 65. From there, he and his wife moved to Marietta, Georgia, to live out their golden years. While moving around doesn't necessarily mean any sort of crime was committed, it does make you wonder what exactly Zanstra was up to all those years in so many towns all across America. In 2023, police brought in 83-year-old Zanstra for questioning regarding Gretchen's case, where he once again told him the same old story, that he hadn't seen her that day. That's when they presented him with the new evidence.

The details about the shorts she was wearing and the new info Sarah provided about him touching her and his daughter. It was also another complaint against him in Delaware County coming out at this time that painted him in an unflattering light. Maybe it was the weight of guilt he had been carrying all those years, but with that all laid out in front of him, he finally confessed. He told police that on August 15th, he drove past Gretchen on. his way to Trinity and offered her a ride. His demons took a hold of him. He just couldn't help himself. And once the girl realized they weren't headed to camp, she panicked, and then he panicked, that's when he hit her. There was no turning back. And so he did what he wanted with her before finishing her off and then dumping her body. After that, he just went back to being the pastor of the

camp, same as he always had. This wolf and sheep's clothing aided in the search for retent, said prayers with the Harringtons, and even presided over the girl's funeral, all while knowing exactly what he had done. If that's not the ultimate monster, then I don't really know what is. Now the question shifts a little, you have to wonder how many other victims are out there. Zantra floated around to state after state, and unfortunately, his criminal actions are not typically the type of thing that somebody does just one time. While there's closure to a certain degree for the Harrington's, DNA may prove this man did a whole laundry list of bad things, only time will tell. Right now, Zanstra waits his day in court, but it is amazing that he got

away with this crime for such a long time. The reality is, this type of case is not unique. These things happen all the time to varying degrees all around the world, so I guess when you find yourself wondering what happened to the good old days, why it is we're so. We're so protective of our children now and find it so hard to truly trust our neighbors and even friends. The answer, least in part, is because a pastor, David Zanstra, and many people like them out there who take advantage of the innocent by committing unthinkable acts of betrayal. So that's it for this week's episode of Everytown. Hope you guys enjoyed it. If you like the podcast we're putting out, there's a lot more content we have for you to listen to. Go check out our other

podcast called Scary Mysteries. If you want to watch this episode and others, go check out our Scary Mysteries YouTube channel. And for exclusive podcasts, each and every week, plus other perks, please go check us out at patreon.com slash scary mysteries. Thanks again for tuning in today. And remember to come back next week for another episode filled with scary, strange, and mysterious stories. As you never know, maybe your town will be next.