Mother of Cassandra Gross, missing woman allegedly killed by ex-boyfriend, plans new search

UNITY TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) -- The mother of a woman who has been missing since 2018 is planning a new search.

Cassandra Gross was declared legally dead in 2019 and her ex-boyfriend has been charged in the case in Westmoreland County. But her body has never been found.

It's been almost 7 years since Kathe Gross has heard her daughter Cassandra's voice. While she knows she's never coming back alive, she wants Cassandra to be able to rest in peace. And says she won't give up until the man responsible is behind bars. 

April 7, 2018 is a day Kathe Gross will never forget. That was the last day she would ever hear her daughter's voice.

Two days later, she reported her missing. Fast forward to the present, and Kathe is still searching for anything that will connect Cassandra's death to the person police say is responsible for killing her. 

"We're going to have one more search and it's going to be the last one. I've done 128 searches," Kathe Gross said. 

This time Kathe isn't searching for a body. She believes her daughter was burned to death after police recovered partially destroyed items that belonged to Cassandra from a burn barrel on the property of Thomas Stanko, who is charged in her death. 

"I was told that people like him keep a trophy," Kathe Gross said. "And it could be buried in a metal box. So that's what we're looking for this time," she added. 

Kathe is asking anyone interested in helping her finally put an end to her nightmare and join the last search to wear boots and bring a metal detector if possible. If anything is found, the item should be preserved, the location marked and police called. 

"It's been like going through hell and back every day. I've worn a path through hell," she said. 

"If I don't find anything, it's in basically God's hands and the law," she added. 

Stanko is serving a 7-year federal sentence for illegal weapons found in his home during the search for Cassandra's remains. A date for his murder trial hasn't been set. 

The search starts at 11 a.m. on Saturday at Unity Cemetery. Kathe Gross wants to thank everyone who comes out ahead of time for their continued support.