As released by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Peter J. Smith United States Attorney Middle District of Pennsylvania

PRISON INMATE, PSYCHOLOGIST AND THREE OTHERS CHARGED WITH CONSPIRACY TO THREATEN WITNESS

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Nicholas Stanishia, age 44, an Ohio prison inmate, Marcia J. Weber, age 46, of Loveland, Ohio, Martin Jay Wilson, age 43, of Kansas City, Missouri, Jody Six, age 40, and Anthony Vaughn, age 41, both Ohio inmates were indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury in Harrisburg and charged with an interstate conspiracy to transmit threats to a witness.

According to U.S. Attorney Peter Smith, Stanishia who is serving a sentence of life imprisonment at the Southeastern Correctional Institution in Lancaster, Ohio, allegedly developed an intimate relationship with clinical psychologist Weber who helped orchestrate Stanishia’s release from prison by attempting to get a witness who had identified Stanishia at his Ohio murder trial to recant his statement to police and his trial testimony.

According to the indictment, Stanishia and Weber allegedly hired a private investigator to locate the witness and obtain information about where he and his wife lived and worked and information about the couple’s children. They then allegedly hired Wilson to travel from Missouri to Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, where the witness now lives, and place a gas can on the witness’s porch.



 Stanishia then allegedly, with the help of Six - another inmate - used a smuggled-in cellular telephone to contact the witness and threaten him over the telephone.

Special Agent in Charge, Edward J. Hanko, FBI, Philadelphia Division stated: “This case represents an incredible collaborative effort between FBI Field Offices in Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Kansas City, the US Attorney's Office-Middle District Pennsylvania and Southern District Ohio, Hampden Township Police Department, Lower Paxton Police Department, Ohio Highway State Patrol, and the Southeastern Correctional Institution, Lancaster, Ohio.

This matter is also a reminder of the ever-present threat from criminal elements, even those housed in our prison systems. Rest assured, the FBI will remain diligent and work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively address these threats as they surface to ensure the community is safe and perpetrators are brought to justice.”

According to the indictment, in 1997 Stanishia murdered his ex-girlfriend and shot the woman’s then boyfriend. Stanishia then fled and remained at large until his capture in 2000 after committing a home invasion and rape of a Kansas woman. The boyfriend ended up identifying Stanishia as the murderer and testifying against him at trial. Stanishia was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on the murder and 23 years for the attempted murder, burglary and firearms offenses. Stanishia is currently serving his sentence in Ohio. Stanishia was also convicted of the home invasion and rape and sentenced to 54 years’ imprisonment.

Stanishia allegedly referenced the gas can as a message to the victim of his ability to reach the witness even while imprisoned in Ohio. Stanishia also allegedly claimed to be a high ranking member of the Aryan Brotherhood and made the witness aware of the group’s ability to reach the witness in Pennsylvania.

Weber and Stanishia allegedly then prepared a false declaration and affidavit, recanting the identification of Stanishia as the murderer, for the witness to sign, have notarized and return to Stanishia. The false declaration and affidavit were allegedly mailed to the witness using a false return address. Six allegedly stored copies of the draft information and personal information about the witness in his area within the prison to help Stanishia avoid detection. Vaughn, another inmate at the Southeastern Correctional Institution, allegedly helped orchestrate the mailing of the affidavit to the witness by making calls to Weber through a third party .

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daryl F. Bloom.

Weber was taken into custody in Ohio on October 8. Wilson has not yet been taken into custody.

Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

If convicted, all five face a term of imprisonment of up to 45 years and a fine of $750,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.

Photo/Natalie Cake