Unity man charged with homicide in Cassandra Gross disappearance

For 1,662 days, Kathe Gross waited for Thursday.

It was the day state police charged the man they believe killed her daughter, Cassandra Gross, of Unity. Since April 9, 2018 — the day Kathe Gross reported her daughter missing — she pushed for homicide charges against Thomas G. Stanko, 52.

“I’m very grateful to all the police for the thousands of hours they put into getting to this point,” she said. “And the thousands of hours they’re still going to put in to see it through.”

During those four-and-a-half years, Kathe and Harry Gross have searched for their daughter numerous times after last hearing from her April 7, 2018. They’ve also marked birthdays and holidays without her.

Now, a new phase begins.

“I’m just so glad it’s to this point because it’s the beginning of the end,” Kathe Gross said.

Troopers zeroed in on Stanko as a potential suspect almost immediately after Gross was reported missing, searching two properties he owned at the time in Unity. He was charged Thursday with homicide, reckless burning, abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence. Arraignment is set for Nov. 1.

Stanko is at Westmoreland County Prison serving a seven-year federal gun sentence stemming from weapons police found during their searches. He has been incarcerated throughout the investigation on unrelated charges and has maintained his innocence, denying involvement in Gross’s disappearance and death. He was notified of the homicide charges, according to Trooper Steve Limani.

Lt. Christopher J. Terrana, criminal investigation section commander at Troop A’s Greensburg station, described the investigation as “vast.”

“I cannot overstate the enormity of this effort,” he said. “This is one of the largest and most complicated cases we’ve had in recent history.”

Terrana said troopers don’t plan to charge anyone else at this time.

Cassandra Edlyn Gross of Unity called her mom April 7, 2018, while driving on Route 30, headed to her Unity apartment. She’d just finished lunch with a friend at the Parkwood Inn in Southwest Greensburg. Mother and daughter made plans to see each other the next day.

After the call with her mother, Gross’ phone connected to cell towers near Stanko’s Macey Road home in Unity. Shortly after, it ceased contact with the network. Phone records showed Gross and Stanko, who had dated, talked throughout the day April 7, 2018, discussing grocery items and the possibility of getting together in the evening, according to court papers.

After Gross was reported missing two days later, Baxter, her blind, diabetic dog that has since died, was found wandering alone in the Beatty Crossroads area and her Mitsubishi Outlander was found burned along a rail line near Twin Lakes Park.

Police Thursday said they recovered several “partially destroyed items” that belonged to Gross from a burn barrel at the Macey Road home, including Coach eyeglass stems, a Michael Kors clothing tag and a broken medication bottle that might have contained insulin for Baxter.

A few days later, on April 10, 2018, Stanko told investigators he hadn’t seen Gross since they attended a concert together four days earlier. As troopers attempted to arrest him for an unrelated matter on April 13, 2018, Stanko ripped open a plastic bag as he fled on foot from police, flapping his arms “as if to empty the ripped bag of its contents,” according to the complaint. Investigators recovered more than 40 burned items they did not detail in the complaint.

“This was a big moment in Westmoreland County, and the people that live in that Unity Township, Latrobe, Greensburg area, it’s been a tough ride for them,” Limani said. “A lot of people, a lot of searches, a lot of things went into this, and finally today we were able to make an arrest.”

Terrana said the case has had an impact on the troopers not only professionally but personally.

“Everyone involved wore this case for four-and-a-half years,” he said.

Gross would have turned 56 this year, on May 17. She was declared legally dead in January 2019.

Anyone with information in the case is asked to call state police at 724-832-3288 as troopers still hope to find Gross’ remains. The complaint noted police talked to two of Stanko’s past wives, who reported he was abusive toward them and threatened to dispose of their bodies in a secret location.

“Despite numerous searches, Cassandra has not been found,” Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli said.

Limani said troopers would like an opportunity to talk to Stanko about the case.

“If we have the ability to talk to him, that’ll be up to his attorneys,” he said.

Stanko did not have an attorney listed in online court records. A preliminary hearing is set for Nov. 14.