A verdict has been reached in the murder trial of a Westmoreland County woman who disappeared in 2018.
A jury found Thomas Stanko guilty of first-degree murder and reckless burning in connection with the death of his estranged girlfriend, Cassandra Gross. He was found not guilty on a charge of third-degree murder.
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Gross went missing on April 7, 2018, and was never found. A judge declared her legally dead about nine months later.
Gross’s family and friends were praying, shaking and thanking God as the verdict was read.
The 12-person jury had been deliberating for about four hours, returning the verdict just after 4 p.m.
Gross’s mother, Kathe Gross, was in the courtroom while the verdict was read, along with several family members and friends, who wore t-shirts to honor her daughter’s memory.
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Over the last six-and-a-half years, Kathe Gross organized 128 searches looking for her daughter, who went missing in 2018. She told us this day has been a long time coming.
“There’s not words for what I’m feeling right now,” she said. “It took me eight years to get him. I’m just so happy.”
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Throughout the weeklong trial, the prosecution focused on Stanko’s pattern of violent behavior. Prosecutors say the jury saw through Stanko’s lies.
Another key part of the trial wastestimony from two of Stanko’s fellow inmates, who said he admitted to them that he killed Gross.
The prosecution presented 400 pieces of evidence throughout the trial, including the burned remnants of Gross’s eyeglasses. One of their biggest challenges was a first-degree murder conviction without a body ever being found.
Channel 11’s Lauren Talotta was there as Thomas Stanko was brought out of the Westmoreland County Courthouse. Talotta asked him where Gross is, and he did not answer.
“We’re very pleased with the verdict, and we appreciate the work the jury did, and the state police did,” Assistant District Attorney Jim Lazar said. “This was a long fight, and we’re just happy that the Gross family has the closure we could never get out of Tom Stanko.”
Stanko will be sentenced within the next three months.
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