Indian Lake Borough, Pa. – Pennsylvania State Police are renewing a $5,000 reward in the unsolved 1986 death of a Somerset County man, seeking new information nearly four decades later.
According to Pennsylvania State Police Troop A in Somerset, troopers responded to a residence on Peninsula Drive in Indian Lake Borough at 12:15 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 20, 1986, for a reported death investigation.
Police said John Vanyo was found unresponsive inside the home. Investigators determined he allegedly died following a physical altercation that occurred earlier at the residence. Authorities reported there were no signs of forced entry and no items of value were missing.
Vanyo was last heard from at approximately 10 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 1986, according to state police.
The case remains unsolved. PSP said a $5,000 cash reward is available for information that leads to an arrest, the solving of the crime, or the location of a wanted person or fugitive connected to the investigation. Officials emphasized that reward funds are not paid by taxpayers.
Anyone with information is asked to contact PSP Somerset Station at 814-445-4104 and speak with Trooper Waldschmidt in the Criminal Investigation Unit, call PSP Tips at 1-800-472-8477, or submit information online at pa3tips.com.
The renewed appeal may be especially relevant to long-time Somerset County residents who remember the case from the 1980s.
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