Thomas G. Stanko testified Tuesday that he believes another man is responsible for the disappearance of his former girlfriend, Cassandra Gross, and twice offered to take a polygraph test to prove his innocence.
Stanko spoke publicly for the first time regarding Gross’ disappearance when he took the stand in his own defense on day seven of his homicide trial in Westmoreland County court.
Stanko, 55, of Unity, is charged with criminal homicide and reckless burning in connection with the disappearance of Gross, 51. While Gross was legally declared dead in 2019, her remains have never been found. Prosecutors contend Stanko killed Gross following a meeting on April 7, 2018, before burning her body and discarding her remains.
During two hours of cross examination by Assistant District Attorney Jim Lazar this afternoon, Stanko was repeatedly questioned about his actions in days after Gross disappeared, the cause of his facial injuries and other inconsistencies between his statements to police and his court testimony.
At one point in the contentious back-and-forth, Lazar told Stanko he was trying to establish that Stanko killed Gross.
Stanko pushed back, stating “I did not and you know that.”
In earlier testimony Stanko told the jury about a 2017 altercation in the Tin Lizzy bar in Youngstown, where a man harassed and threatened to kill him and Cassandra Gross. That incident resulted in Stanko originally being charged with assault, but the case was later dropped.
Stanko denied any involvement in Gross’ disappearance and murder. He claimed he and Gross had a loving relationship and that he last saw her on April 7, 2018, when she left his home between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. to go shopping.
He testified that while at his house, he and Gross went through boxes she took from storage and placed items she wanted to discard in his burn barrel. Gross’ glasses accidentally fell off her head and into the burn pile, he said.
Defense attorney Marc Daffner questioned Stanko for 35 minutes this morning before Lazar began his cross-examination.
During questioning, Stanko twice asked to take a lie detector test, which he says would confirm his innocence.
“You know we could correct all of this,” Stanko said to Lazar. “How about we go downstairs right now and take a polygraph test, right now?”
Lazar questioned Stanko about his actions in the days following Gross’ disappearance.
“I done nothing intentional to harm anybody,” Stanko replied. “I had nothing, I didn’t cover anything up. There was nothing to cover up. I didn’t do this crime.”
Lazar questions Stanko about his actions in the days after Gross disappeared. “I done nothing intentional to harm anybody. I had nothing, I didn’t cover anything up. There was nothing to cover up. I didn’t do this crime,”Stanko said.
— Rich Cholodofsky (@RichCholodofsky) February 10, 2026
The prosecution rested its case this morning following testimony from Cathy Vokes, who said she and Stanko began a relationship in 2014. They had known each other for years, as Stanko was previously married to Vokes’ sister.
Vokes detailed a turbulent and violent relationship in which she said she was assaulted and stalked by Stanko. She described one incident in which she said Stanko choked her after she threatened to leave him.
They married in 2015 and the violence continued, Vokes testified. She told jurors about an incident when she discovered a hidden phone bill in a shed that showed repeated calls to Stanko’s ex-girlfriend. Stanko threatened to flatten her tires as she attempted to leave.
Vokes said Stanko pulled her out of a car parked outside of his mother’s home, chased her into the Union Cemetery and jumped on her and assaulted her.
“He told me he would kill me or my family. He told me he could kill me and no one will ever find me,” Vokes testified.
He pulled her out of the car parked outside of Stanko mother’s home, chased her into the Union Cemetery and jumped on her and assaulted her, she said. “He told me he would kill me or my family. He told me he could kill me and no one will ever find me,” Vokes testified.
— Rich Cholodofsky (@RichCholodofsky) February 10, 2026
Vokes also described numerous incidents in which Stanko would stalk and harass her at her parents’ home. Neighbors of Gross described similar behavior earlier in the trial.
The prosecution concluded its case before Judge Michael Stewart after presenting 32 witnesses and 357 exhibits over the past week.
