Linda Stoltzfoos: Cops confirm body of missing Amish teen, 18, found wrapped in tarp and buried in shallow grave
HUMAN remains discovered during the search for a missing 18-year-old Amish girl who vanished exactly ten months ago are that of the teen, officials say.
Linda Stoltzfoos and is believed to have been abducted and killed by Justo Smoker, 35.
A huge investigation involving the FBI, the East Lampeter Township Police Department, and Pennsylvania State Police
The remains were found wrapped in a tarp and buried over three feet deep behind Smoker's former workplace, Dutchland Incorporated, Lancaster County DA Heather Adams announced.
Authorities now believe Stoltzfoos was murdered within hours of her being abducted and originally buried on the 3100 block of Harvest Drive.
Smoker had been seen in another area where cops later found a buried bra and stockings that are believed to belong to Linda, which had DNA "attributable to Smoker" on one of the stockings.
Investigators suggest her body was then taken to the wooded area where her remains - along with a dress, bonnet, and shoes matching what she was last seen in - were found this week.
"While the coroner's office has not yet made a positive forensic identification, based on all of the information currently known and available to us, we strongly believe and are comfortable saying, that the remains are those of 18-year-old Linda Stoltzfoos," Adams continued.
The county coroner's office will now conduct a formal identification and investigate the cause and circumstances surrounding her death. An autopsy is scheduled for Friday.
Linda's heartbroken uncle told CBS 21: "I'm still in shock and never ready for news like this."
The shocking discovery has rocked the close-knit Amish community.
The location where the remains were found had previously been searched by police and search teams, who have trawled through inches of the county, amounting to over 15,000 man-hours.
The investigation into Linda's disappearance saw input from every level of law enforcement, including the FBI offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to her recovery in July.
Adams did not reveal what led to the new discovery.
"For the family I feel terrible because they keep all this hope all this time that maybe she will show up, but then again it's a closure," Local Debbie Matteoda said.
"It's sad," Krista Hanna added. "I hope that the family feels peace a little bit and the search is over and they know now what happened."
has been gripped by Linda's disappearance on Father's Day 2020 that saw Smoker arrested for kidnapping and misdemeanor false imprisonment the following month.
He was then charged with homicide in December after prosecutors said the his "complete cessation of all routine activities" and the duration of time that had passed suggested Linda had died and Smoker was respoonsible.
The cases lead investigator, East Lampeter Township police Detective Christopher Jones, delivered testimony from several Amish women who had said a man of Smoker's description had been stalking them the day before Linda disappeared.
Smoker's cell phone records and surveillance cameras put him and his car in the area of the abduction, before he drove to the densely forested Welsh Mountain area.
Most read in News
Linda's friends and family insisted she had never expressed any desire to leave and had made plans to meet up with pals at a church youth group on June 21.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
She was last seen walking alone on Beechdale Road, her usual route home from church, before a red Kia Rio - that had Smoker's registration plates - is also seen on the surveillance footage.
She was last seen wearing a "tan dress, white apron and white cape."
