3 charged with kidnapping Pa. man missing for over 6 months

A Lancaster County, Pennsylvania man who provided information to law enforcement about a shooting was kidnapped, murdered and thrown from a bridge, police say – and then listed as a missing person for over six months.

Three men are now in custody and criminally charged with killing the man who went missing in April, authorities said Friday.

Matthew Whisman, 25, was last seen in East Drumore Township, Lancaster County, according to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. In a news release, Pennsylvania State Police said the agency received a report about Whisman in early July and began investigating.

Troopers learned Whisman was assaulted and kidnapped from a home on Lancaster Pike on April 3, 2024 after cooperating with law enforcement investigating a shooting that occurred in Rising Sun, Maryland.

"Through continued investigation, troopers determined that the victim was murdered, and his body discarded over a bridge," Pennsylvania State Police said in a news release.

Investigators recovered some remains in Conowingo Creek in Cecil County, Maryland on Aug. 8, 2024, CBS News Baltimore reported.

Three people are now charged with kidnapping, conspiracy to commit murder, assault, abuse of a corpse, witness intimidation and other offenses. Jeremy Absher, 25, of Mayesville, South Carolina; 27-year-old Steven Gaddis of Nottingham, Pennsylvania; and a 17-year-old East Drumore Township boy.

All three are in custody, a spokesperson for the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office said.