New indictment filed against Unity man linked to disappearance of Cassandra Gross

A Unity man linked to the disappearance of Cassandra Gross has been indicted on charges of having a sawed-off rifle in Potter County nearly two years ago.

The serial number on the .22-caliber rifle had been removed and the firearm was not registered to Thomas George Stanko, 49, according to the grand jury indictment. It was filed May 28 in federal court in Williamsport. No court hearings have been scheduled.

Attorney Komron Jon Maknoon said he is discussing with Stanko in what jurisdiction the new case will proceed.

Stanko is accused of having the gun on Oct. 25, 2018, in Potter County. He is not permitted to own firearms as a convicted felon. Federal authorities are seeking the forfeiture of the weapon, according to court papers.

It was unclear from the indictment how the rifle was found. Stanko owns about 4 acres of what appears to be mostly wooded property in Clara Township, Potter County, in the northcentral part of Pennsylvania, according to county records.

Stanko has been in jail since April 2018 on charges unrelated to Gross’ disappearance.

Gross was last seen April 7, 2018. She called her mother that afternoon while driving to her Unity home after having lunch with a friend in Southwest Greensburg. Gross was reported missing two days later, the same day her blind and diabetic dog Baxter was found wandering alone in the Beatty Crossroads area.

On April 10, 2018, state police found her Mitsubishi Outlander burned almost beyond recognition in a wooded area near Twin Lakes Park. She would have turned 54 in May.

State police were seen searching two properties Stanko owns in the days after her disappearance. One adjacent to Unity Cemetery where Stanko’s mother lives has been searched several times over the last two years. Last month, troopers found a few items during a search there that they sent for testing. They have not publicly provided details about those items.

Baxter died May 26, said Gross’ mother Kathe Gross. He had been living for the past two years with someone who boarded him for Cassandra Gross in the past.

She was declared legally dead in January 2019 by a Westmoreland County judge. State police have continued to look for evidence of Gross’ whereabouts and they classify the case as a homicide. No arrests have been made.

Stanko faces charges in several unrelated criminal cases that have been filed by state police since Gross’ disappearance. Those county cases have stalled since December 2018 when he was indicted by a federal grant jury for illegally possessing 17 firearms and ammunition. Felony convictions in Westmoreland County dating back to 1989 prohibit him from having firearms.

Pretrial motions in the federal case are due July 8.

His mother, Almira Stanko, 83, of Unity, is awaiting trial in Westmoreland County on three felony counts, including conspiracy and fraud, in connection with allegations she attempted to use her son’s government benefits account while he is jail awaiting trial.