Three charged in april murder of east drumore township man

EAST DRUMORE TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Pennsylvania State Police have charged three men in connection with the murder of Matthew Scott Whisman, a 25-year-old East Drumore Township man who had been cooperating with authorities in a separate investigation. Alexander Whisman, 17, Steven Gaddis, 27, and Jeremy Absher, 25, face 11 charges each, including murder, kidnapping, and intimidation of a witness.

The trio is accused of killing Matthew Whisman after learning of his cooperation with law enforcement regarding a non-fatal shooting in Maryland earlier this year. Investigators say the murder took place on the night of April 3, 2024, at a residence on Lancaster Pike, where Gaddis, Alexander Whisman, and Absher assaulted and kidnapped the victim. They then injected him with a lethal dose of fentanyl before disposing of his body.

Matthew Whisman, who was cousins with Alexander Whisman and Absher, had been missing since April. His remains were discovered downstream near a hiking trail in Cecil County, Maryland, in August and were confirmed as his through forensic analysis. Police began searching for him in July after his mother reported that she had not heard from him in months.

According to investigators, the murder was motivated by Matthew Whisman’s involvement in a police investigation into a January shots-fired incident in Maryland. One witness told authorities that he believed “something horrible” had happened to the victim and identified the three suspects as responsible.

Alexander Whisman is currently in custody at the Lancaster County Youth Intervention Center on unrelated charges. Gaddis, of Pocopson Township, Chester County, and Absher, who had moved to South Carolina following the disappearance, are also in custody on separate charges. All three now face charges in connection with the murder of Matthew Whisman.

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