Lancaster, PA mestizo charged with kidnapping in disappearance of Amish WF, 18

[voiceofreason]

https://www.yorkdispatch.com/story/...dnapping-disappearance-amish-teen/5421896002/

Lancaster man charged with kidnapping in disappearance of Amish teen

07/11/2020

A Lancaster County man was arrested Friday and charged with kidnapping an Amish teenager missing since June 21.

The whereabouts of Linda Stoltzfoos, 18, remain unknown, although investigators “have reason to believe she was harmed following her abduction,” the Lancaster County District Attorney’s Office stated in a news release.

East Lampeter Township Police charged Justo Smoker, 34, of the 3200 block of Lincoln Highway East in Paradise, with felony kidnapping and misdemeanor false imprisonment. He was arraigned Saturday morning by District Judge Joshua Keller, who “made Smoker ineligible for bail, citing the nature of the charges and the ongoing investigation,” the DA’s office stated.

Investigators on Friday searched a rural area in Ronks, where they believed Stoltzfoos might have been taken after being kidnapped and where Smoker’s vehicle was seen parked on June 23, according to the release. Investigators found clothing believed to belong to Stoltzfoos buried in the wooded area.

Smoker became a person of interest after police received information about a red or orange vehicle seen in the Gap area on the afternoon of the abduction, the DA’s office stated. Witnesses reported seeing an Amish female in the passenger seat of a vehicle driven by a male; descriptions of the driver and vehicle are consistent with Smoker and his vehicle.

The search for Stoltzfoos continues.

She disappeared on Sunday, June 21, after a church service. She was last seen at a farm on Stumptown Road, between the intersection of Beechdale Road and Gibbons Road in Bird-in-Hand, Lancaster County.

Stoltzfoos is approximately 5-feet-10 inches and weighs 125 pounds. She is a member of the Amish community and was last seen wearing a tan dress, white apron, and black head covering, according to a news release.

 

[The Bobster]

https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2...inda-stoltzfoos-as-search-for-teen-continues/

Man Charged In Kidnapping Of Missing Amish 18-Year-Old Linda Stoltzfoos As Search For Teen Continues
By CBS3 Staff
July 11, 2020 at 11:00 pm

LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. (CBS) — A man has been charged with the kidnapping of an Amish teenager who disappeared last month, the Lancaster County District Attorney’s Office confirmed Saturday. Investigators have yet to find the missing teen and are now asking for any information that can lead to her whereabouts.

East Lampeter Township police charged 34-year-old Justo Smoker on Friday with felony kidnapping and misdemeanor false imprisonment in connection with the disappearance of 18-year-old Linda Stoltzfoos.

Stoltzfoos was last seen June 21 on a farm on Stumptown Road in the community of Bird-In-Hand. Her father reported her missing when she did not return from a youth group that night, but investigators say she never made it to the social gathering.

Her whereabouts remain unknown and authorities believe she was harmed following her abduction.

According to investigators, Smoker became a person of interest in the kidnapping after police confirmed his red Kia Rio was in the Gap area on the afternoon of the abduction. Witnesses also reported seeing an Amish girl sitting in the passenger side of that vehicle.

Investigators say surveillance video shows the abduction of Linda Stoltzfoos on Beechdale Road and the red Kia.

Smoker’s vehicle was also seen parked in a rural location in Ronks on June 23, where police believe Stoltzfoos might have been taken after being kidnapped.

On Friday, investigators searched that area and found, buried in a wooded area, articles of clothing believed to belong to Stoltzfoos.

Investigators are now asking anyone who might have seen Smoker or his red Kia Rio sedan around the time Stoltzfoos was abducted, and in the days after, to contact police at 717-291-4676.

Police say the vehicle has a distinct spoiler, a “LCM” sticker on the trunk, and has a Pennsylvania tag KYB-9713.

On Saturday night, members of the Amish community and beyond gathered in prayer, asking that Stoltzfoos be safely returned to her family.

Sources close to the case tell Eyewitness News the teen’s parents were notified about the arrest earlier Saturday.

The FBI on Friday upped its reward to $10,000 for information leading to her recovery.

 

[saturnsrings]

Just horrible. They are all over this country.

 

[Ensis]

Just horrible. They are all over this country.

They have been cantoned everywhere in North America. They are a low-I.Q.ed plague, fostered by ZOG.

 

[The Bobster]

https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2...teen-linda-stoltzfoos-ordered-to-stand-trial/

Pennsylvania Man Accused Of Kidnapping Amish Teen Linda Stoltzfoos Ordered To Stand Trial
By CBS3 Staff
August 7, 2020 at 7:21 am

LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. (CBS) — A Pennsylvania man accused of kidnapping an Amish teen has been ordered to stand trial. A preliminary hearing was held Thursday for 34-year-old Justo Smoker.

The Lancaster County man is accused of kidnapping 18-year-old Linda Stoltzfoos on Father’s Day.

The teen’s whereabouts remain unknown.

Smoker will be formally arraigned later this month.

 

[saturnsrings]

That's probably not even it's real name!

 

[Ensis]

Who knows! Niggers have such odd names.

 

[The Bobster]

https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2...-kidnapping-linda-stoltfoos-lancaster-county/

Lancaster County Prosecutors File Homicide Charges Against Suspect Accused Of Kidnapping Amish Teen Linda Stoltzfoos
December 21, 2020 at 3:05 pm

LANCASTER, Pa. (CBS/AP) — Prosecutors have filed homicide charges against the suspect accused in the disappearance of an Amish teenager. Lancaster County District Attorney Heather Adams announced Monday that Justo Smoker, 34, of Paradise, was charged with criminal homicide in the case of Linda Stoltzfoos, 18, who has been missing since June 21.

Smoker was previously charged with kidnapping Stoltzfoos.

Stoltzfoos was last seen walking home from church in the Bird-in-Hand area, and no sign of her has been found since, Adams said. Friends and family said Stoltzfoos was happy with her life and had never expressed any desire to leave, and she had made plans to join others in a church youth group the day she disappeared, Adams said.

Credit: CBS3


All of the evidence, including evidence developed since the suspect’s arrest, has led investigators to “the tragic and inescapable conclusion that Linda is deceased,” she said.

“Given the circumstances of Linda’s disappearance — specifically, a forceful abduction by a stranger — we always feared the worst,” Adams said. After careful consideration of the evidence and the law, authorities were “now in a position — legally — to charge Smoker with murder, despite not having recovered Linda’s body.”

Adams vowed that efforts to find the victim’s body would continue “in order to try to provide some closure to her family who love her and miss her dearly.”

Smoker was earlier charged with a felony kidnapping count and misdemeanor false imprisonment. Authorities said surveillance video enhanced by FBI forensic technicians depicted her abduction and showed a red sedan, the same kind of car owned by the defendant, was involved in the abduction.

In a rural location in Ronks where they believe the victim might have been taken and where the vehicle was seen parked June 23, authorities found items of Stoltzfoos’ clothing buried in a wooded area, prosecutors said. A DNA profile “attributable to Smoker” was found on one of her buried stockings, Adams said Monday.

Chief Public Defender Christopher Tallarico, who is representing Smoker, told LNP newspaper that he was aware prosecutors were contemplating filing the homicide charge, but had no other comment.

 

[Arheel's Uncle]

Heavy: Justo Smoker: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

By Alyssa Choiniere Updated Jul 11, 2020 at 9:05pm



Justo Smoker was arrested today and charged with kidnapping missing Amish girl Linda Stoltzfoos in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The 18-year-old woman was last seen walking home from church June 21, 2020, and remains missing.
Stoltzsfoos was last seen in the area of Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania, nearly three weeks ago on Father’s Day. Surveillance footage and witness accounts led investigators to Smoker, 34, of Paradise, Pennsylvania. Police are continuing the search for Stoltzfoos, who they believe was harmed, according to the East Lampeter Township Police Department.
Smoker was a high school wrestling star who spent the majority of his adult life in prison following a string of robberies when he was 21. He pleaded guilty to robbing four businesses in a six-day period. Smoker was adopted at age 7, and his adopted parents told a judge at his sentencing that they would support him after he was released from prison.
Investigators are asking anyone who may have seen Smoker or his red Kia Rio sedan around the time Stoltzfoos was abducted, or in the days after, to contact police at 717-291-4676. His sedan has a distinctive spoiler and an “LCM” sticker on the trunk.
Here’s what you need to know:

1. Justo Smoker Was Charged With Felony Kidnapping & a Misdemeanor, False Imprisonment, in Linda Stoltzfoos’ Disappearance
Justo Smoker was charged with kidnapping to inflict injury/terror, a felony, and false imprisonment, a misdemeanor, according to the docket sheet filed in his case. Smoker was arrested Friday, July 10, 2020 in the disappearance of 18-year-old Linda Stoltzfoos, after police found her clothes buried in a rural area where witnesses said they saw Smoker’s car. The Amish teen remains missing. Police arrested him at his place of employment. His charges were filed Saturday, July 11, 2020 before Magisterial District Judge B. Denise Commins in Upper Leacock Township, Pennsylvania. The charges were filed by East Lampeter Township police Detective Christopher Jones.
Smoker, of Paradise, Pennsylvania, was arraigned Saturday morning before on-call Magisterial District Judge Joshua R. Keller, who denied bail in the case. Keller denied bail due to the nature of the case and the ongoing investigation into Stoltzfoos’ disappearance, Smoker’s docket sheet says.
“Bail Action Reason: Due to the nature of the charges and ongoing investigation into the status of the victim,” the docket sheet said.
Smoker’s charges were filed by the East Lampeter Township Police Department following an investigation assisted by the FBI, Pennsylvania State Police and the Lancaster County District Attorney’s Office.

2. Police Are Continuing the Search for Missing Amish Girl Linda Stoltzfoos, Who Has Not Been Seen for Nearly 3 Weeks
Police have not given up the search for 18-year-old Linda Stolzfoos, who was last seen walking home from church, according to the East Lampeter Township Police Department. Police are asking anyone with information on Smoker or the disappearance to call 717-291-4676. Police believe that Stoltzfoos was harmed.
“The whereabouts of Linda Stoltzfoos remain unknown. Investigators are actively searching and working to determine what happened to Stoltzfoos after she was taken. Investigators have reason to believe Stoltzfoos was harmed following her abduction,” East Lampeter Township Police said.
Stolztfoos’ father reported her missing when she did not return home after a youth group gathering late in the evening June 21, 2020. Surveillance footage led authorities to Smoker, whose red Kia Rio was spotted parked in a rural location in Ronks. Police searched that area the night before the arrest and found Stolzfoos’ clothes buried, they said. Multiple witnesses also reported to police they saw an Amish female in a car matching the description of Smoker’s red Kia Rio, and the abduction was captured on surveillance footage, police said.

3. Justo Smoker Spent Most of His Adult Life in Prison for a 2006 Robbery Spree
Justo Roberto Smoker has a criminal history stretching back to 2005. He was charged in a string of robberies in 2006, according to court documents filed in his case, and spent most of his adult life in prison.
Lancaster Online reported Smoker committed a string of robberies armed with a BB gun, along with his younger brother, Victor. The brothers robbed four different businesses and farm markets in a six-day stretch between August 8, 2006 and August 13, 2006, the news outlet reported. You can view his docket sheets online here. Smoker pleaded guilty, and he was sentenced to serve 12 1/2 to 30 years in prison.
Smoker also pleaded guilty to burglary and robbery in cases stemming from 2005 incidents, according to Pennsylvania’s Unified Judicial System. On February 16, 2007, he was charged with robbery and related charges by Pennsylvania State Police in Avondale, stemming from an incident June 6, 2005. He pleaded guilty to robbery in 2007, and was sentenced to serve five to 12 years in prison, according to his docket sheet.
On September 20, 2006, he was arrested for burglary and related charges stemming from a September 11, 2005 incident in East Earl Township. He pleaded guilty May 16, 2007, and was sentenced to serve 15 to 30 months, his docket sheet said.

4. Justo Smoker Was a High School Wrestling Star & Earned a Place on the Lancaster-Lebanon All-Star Team
Justo Smoker was a high school wrestling star who did well in school, but turned to crime in his early adulthood. He spent the majority of his adult life in prison following a string of robberies in 2006, when he was 21 years old, according to his criminal history. He also committed a burglary and a robbery in 2005, his court documents indicated.
Lancaster Online reported Smoker was a star wrestler. He had a 3.0 grade point average at Pequea Valley High School and earned a place on the Lancaster-Lebanon wrestling all-star team in 2003.
Judge Joseph Madenspacher told Smoker that he could have sentenced him to serve double the 12 1/2 to 30-year sentence, or even sentence him to serve his life in prison, according to a Lancaster Online article from 2007. Instead, he gave him a sentence to ensure “society is protected, but that you could still come out and lead a reasonable life,” the article said.

5. Justo Smoker Was Adopted at Age 7 After He Was ‘Living on the Street,’ His Defense Attorney Told a Judge in 2007
Justo Smoker was adopted by Vernon and Deb Smoker of Lancaster, Pennsylvania when he was 7 years old. Before that, he was “living on the street, just trying to survive,” his defense attorney, Cory Miller, told a judge when Smoker appeared in court to be sentenced on robbery charges in 2007, according to Lancaster Online.
“They raised me better than this,” Smoker told the judge. “I’m sorry for what I did and the people I hurt, including my family” he added. “But I’m glad they’re here.”
Smoker’s adopted father said Smoker had been “trouble since we got him,” adding he noticed a positive attitude shift since Smoker had been in county jail. Deb Smoker committed to supporting her adopted son during his incarceration and after he was released from prison.
“We’re are here for Justo,” Deb Smoker said. “He has an extended family and church family.”
Smoker was identified as a person of interest in Stolzfoos’ kidnapping after police received information about a red or orange vehicle in the Gap area on the afternoon of her abduction. Several witnesses reported seeing an Amish female in the passenger seat of the vehicle, driven by a male. Police also obtained surveillance footage, enhanced by FBI technicians, which shows the young woman’s abduction on Beechdale Road. That road was part of Stolzfoos’ route back home from church. Investigators learned she never made it to her youth social gathering.
“Police found nothing indicating Stoltzfoos was unhappy and wanted to leave her community,” East Lampeter Township Police said.
Police are still seeking information to help close the case and find the missing woman.
“Investigators are asking anyone who might have seen Smoker – or his red Kia Rio sedan – around the time Stoltzfoos was abducted, and in the days after, to contact police at 717-291-4676,” East Lampeter Township Police said.

 

[The Bobster]

https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2021/04/22/linda-stoltzfoos-amish-body-found-lancaster-county/

Body Of Missing Amish Teen, Linda Stoltzfoos, Found In Lancaster County, Family Says
By CBS3 Staff
April 22, 2021 at 8:15 am

LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. (CBS) — The body of missing Amish teenager Linda Stoltzfoos has been found in Lancaster County, according to her family. Earlier Wednesday, officials in Lancaster County said they had found human remains in a rural area of eastern Lancaster County while searching for the missing Amish woman.

The 18-year-old Stoltzfoos has been missing since last June.

The coroner says an autopsy must be done to confirm the identity of the remains and a cause of death.

Prosecutors previously charged Justo Smoker with killing her even though they had not found her body at that point.

Prosecutors say Stoltzfoos was kidnapped on June 21, 2020, while walking home from church.

 

[The Bobster]

https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2021/04/22/amish-teen-linda-stoltzfoos-body-found-ronks-lancaster/

Body Of Missing Amish Teen Linda Stoltzfoos Found In Ronks, Lancaster District Attorney’s Office Confirms
By Matt Petrillo
April 22, 2021 at 5:05 pm

LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. (CBS) — We’re now hearing from the grieving family of Amish teenager Linda Stoltzfoos after authorities announced Thursday her body has been found. The victim’s family is heartbroken, especially considering the teen’s body was found Wednesday, 10 months to the day she went missing.

“There was just anguish at first, but then it really starts bringing closure,” said Mervin Fisher, Stoltzfoos’ uncle.

Stoltzfoos’ uncle is still in shock after learning police discovered his niece’s decaying body in a shallow grave.

“Our hearts go out to the family,” Lancaster County District Attorney Heather Adams said.

Adams revealed Thursday the exhaustive 10-month search for the victim’s remains included K-9s, horses, drones, submarines and more than 15,000 man-hours.

“Law enforcement searched extensively for Linda’s body since June of last year,” Adams said.

That’s when prosecutors say the 18-year-old was kidnapped while walking home from church. Thirty-five-year-old Justo Smoker faced charges connected to her homicide even though police had not yet found her body.

That’s now changed. Authorities say they discovered the victim’s remains Wednesday in a rural part of Lancaster County near the same place where the suspect had worked.

“The remains were recovered behind a business in a grave on railroad property and wrapped in a tarp,” Adams said.

Authorities also say security video appears to show the kidnapping.

“That was a huge break,” Adams said.

“There’s security cameras everywhere,” La Salle University Criminal Justice Chair Charles Gallagher said.

Gallagher is not associated with the case but tells Eyewitness News that private security cameras are helping solve crimes more and more, even in rural areas.

“If you drive to a McDonald’s or a Wawa, there is a security camera. When you basically go through a toll, there is a security camera,” Gallagher said.

The Lancaster County coroner is set to do an autopsy Friday to explain the cause of death.

 

[The Bobster]

https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2...-linda-stoltzfoos-had-been-strangled-stabbed/

Coroner Says Buried Amish Teen Linda Stoltzfoos Had Been Strangled, Stabbed
April 23, 2021 at 12:28 pm

LANCASTER, Pa. (CBS/AP) – A young Amish woman whose remains were found this week, 10 months after her disappearance, was strangled and stabbed in the neck, a coroner ruled Friday. The Lancaster County coroner used dental records to positively identify the body of 18-year-old Linda Stoltzfoos.

The cause of death was asphyxia from strangulation, along with suffocation, the coroner, Dr. Stephen Diamantoni, said following an autopsy Friday. He said the stab wound was a contributing factor in her death.

Stoltzfoos was last seen walking home from church in the Bird-in-Hand area on June 21, 2020. Her remains were found in a grave along railroad tracks behind a business where the man charged in her death had worked.

Justo Smoker, 35, of Paradise, was charged with homicide in December and is awaiting trial. Smoker was initially arrested in August, and also faces charges of kidnapping and false imprisonment. He has pleaded not guilty.

Authorities have declined to say what exactly led them to the grave, or whether Smoker had provided the information as part of a deal with prosecutors. Stoltzfoos’ body was found in the small town of Gap along Route 41, in an area of brush on railroad property behind a business where Smoker had been employed.

Authorities have said they believe Smoker killed Stoltzfoos within a few hours of kidnapping her, buried her in one location where her stockings and bra had been found, and then moved her several days later to the grave discovered Wednesday.

Stoltzfoos’ uncle is still in shock after learning police discovered his niece’s decaying body in a shallow grave.

“There was just anguish at first, but then it really starts bringing closure,” said Mervin Fisher, Stoltzfoos’ uncle.

He said Linda was the eldest sibling in a large family.

 

[The Bobster]

https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2...dnapping-killing-amish-teen-linda-stoltzfoos/

Justo Smoker Pleads Guilty To Kidnapping, Killing Amish Teen Linda Stoltzfoos
July 23, 2021 at 4:06 pm

LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) — A man who led authorities to the remains of a young Amish woman in Pennsylvania pleaded guilty Friday to kidnapping and killing her.

Justo Smoker, 35, pleaded guilty in Lancaster County to third-degree murder, kidnapping and other offenses in the death of 18-year-old Linda Stoltzfoos, who was last seen walking home from church in the Bird-in-Hand area on June 21, 2020.

Smoker was sentenced to 35 1/2 to 71 years in prison. He faces an additional sentence of more than 17 years for violating parole from a previous series of burglaries and robberies.

“This effectively is a life sentence for Smoker,” District Attorney Heather Adams said at a news conference after the hearing.

Authorities said they believe Smoker killed Stoltzfoos within a few hours of kidnapping her, buried her in one location where her stockings and bra were later found, then moved her body to another grave, on railroad property behind a business where he worked. A coroner said she was strangled and stabbed.

Smoker led authorities to her remains in April as a condition of his plea agreement, Adams said.

LNP newspaper reported that Smoker apologized to Stoltzfoos’ family in court, saying he had “robbed the family of time and memories.” President Judge David Ashworth called Smoker a “predator of the worst kind.”

Smoker was on parole from a string of armed robberies he committed in 2006. He was released from prison in February 2019, 16 months before Stoltzfoos was killed.