Police Officer Arrested in 1983 Cold Case Investigation

Montrose, Susquehanna County - A police officer from Susquehanna County is on the other side of the law tonight.

His arrest Wednesday morning brings a 30-year-old cold case back into the headlines.

State police filed murder charges against John Walker of Montrose. They say he shot-and-killed his first wife back in 1983.

Police originally thought the death of Lynda Walker was suicide. Her family and friends didn't believe that designation.

After her body was exhumed and a statewide investigative grand jury had its say, John Walker was arrested Wednesday morning.

The shooting happened at a mobile home along Route 11 in New Milford Township. Family members say the home is no longer there.

"I think that's amazing," Nancy Lake of New Milford said. "I just say karma. Karma comes around. It gets you sooner or later. You just can't get away with things. Some people thing you can."

According to court documents, after Lynda Walker's body was exhumed last year, a forensic pathologist determined her death was not a suicide.

"I think it's terrible. I mean, 30 years it took them to find out. What is up with that?" Linda Groover of New Milford said.

Eyewitness News spoke with the mother of the victim by phone Wednesday afternoon. She had just learned of the charges and was unaware that the charges were about to be filed.

Most recently, Walker was a police sergeant in Montrose and a part-time officer in Silver Lake Township.

Since 1983, he has also worked in other locations, including Clarks Summit.

"Somebody did a bum job on him because if he was guilty, he should have got arrested right on scene at the time when his wife got killed," Laszlo Bencze of Dimock said.

Walker originally told investigators he came home to find his wife dead in bed with a gun next to her but now state police say they have witnesses who place his car at the murder scene.

"We already went through one 50-year murder with Dr. Scher," Groover said.

Investigators say part of the reason why Walker was not initially charged was because of the Susquehanna County coroner in 1983.

They say the coroner initially believed John Walker's story and he was not a trained forensic pathologist. Court documents reveal he signed the death certificate the day before the autopsy.

Walker is locked-up tonight without bail in Susquehanna County.