Northtown Pennsylvania just 6 miles outside of Philadelphia is a place where life seems to unfold quietly but on August 14th 2001 the birth of a girl named Grace brought both hope and tragedy to the small town Grace was born to Rose and Rodney hunsicker her favorite colors were purple and light pink and she had a love of flowers but Grace's story was marked by turmoil from the very beginning un fortunately Grace and her brother were born into a destructive family to say the very least due to issues involving mental illness as well as intellectual challenges the parents lost custody of both Grace and her brother in 2004 3 years later when Grace was only 6 years old she and her brother were adopted through the impact project which is a private Children and Youth agency in Pennsylvania in 2007 Grace and her brother met their new foster parents for the first time Sarah and David packer at the time the Packers had already been caring for dozens of children at their home in Allentown Pennsylvania Sarah was recognized by the state as a licensed caretaker and worked as an adoption supervisor for Northampton County in the youth and families division in 2010 when Grace was only 9 years old David was charged with essaying Grace along with one of the other girls Hugh and Sarah had been fostering this came as a result of CSA material being discovered on David's cell phone David Packer ultimately pled guilty and was sentenced to 18 months to 5 years in prison and was required to be registered as an offender upon his release but for Grace the trauma was irreversible after David's arrest Sarah lost her job and was barred from fostering more children but despite everything Grace and her brother were able to remain under her care even as suspicions grew regarding her involvement in her husband's charges for a brief time Grace managed to find solace in helping others at school she volunteered with special needs students trying to escape her dysfunctional life at home in 2013 Sarah Packer met Jacob Sullivan Jacob was a man who would bring even more Darkness into Grace's life soon Jacob and Sarah packed up took the kids and moved into a new residence in nearby Abington Township Grace didn't get along with Jacob in the slightest but January of 2015 she had enough and moved to North Carolina to live with her adoptive father's cousin where she would ATT 8th and 9th grade in North Carolina Grace hoped for a fresh start but her Escape was sadly short-lived only one month after arriving down south Grace's adopted Father David was paroled from prison in February of 2015 the sake of avoiding the man who essayed her grace was forced to trade one toxic environment for another so she moved back to Pennsylvania in November of 2015 for 13-year-old Grace the nightmare was just beginning July 4th 2016 Grace attended a family picnic and was one of the very last moments that she would be seen alive on Monday July 11th 2016 at precisely 6:45 p. m. then 41-year-old sararah walked into the Abington Township Police Department she reported her 14-year-old adopted daughter Grace Packer missing now according to Sarah the last time she saw Grace was on Friday July 8th at around 9:30 p.
m. after an argument over Grace wanting to visit a friend despite Grace's emotional state Sarah claimed she sent her to her room not knowing that this would be the last time she would see the girl Sarah described Grace as a troubled teen one who had run away before sometimes disappearing for days this time however something felt different Sarah said that when she was checking Grace's room the following morning her daughter was gone along with $300 in cash the police subse entered Grace into the National Crime information center database as a missing person but the case would soon take a much darker turn weeks following Grace's disappearance detective pado of the Abington Township Police Department made numerous attempts to contact Sarah for updates and more information Sarah was elusive she promised to provide recent photos of Grace but she failed to do so she promised to keep the police informed but she didn't return any of their calls by September Sarah and her family had moved from their home in Abington without notifying the authorities leaving no forwarding address when detective panado finally managed to track down their new residence in Quaker Town Sarah's Behavior was odd to say the least she claimed she had informed all her relatives about Grace's disappearance yet many family members later told police that they had heard nothing of the sort Sarah's lack of urgency and concern over Grace's well-being raised red flags but there was still no trace of the missing teenager and then a gruesome Discovery would reignite the investigation October 31st 2016 nearly 4 months after Grace Packer was last seen alive a horrifying Discovery was made in Bear Creek Township Pennsylvania along a remote Road a group of hunters came across a human torso who was discarded like trash The Remains were severely decomposed with arms and legs forcibly removed from the tor so this body had been discovered unclothed and no jewelry was found on or near the remains even though both ears were double pierced lack of insect activity suggested that the body was stored elsewhere possibly in a place where it was preserved before being dumped in the woods DrWayne Ross who is a forensic pathologist conducted an autopsy and confirmed that the remains belonged to a young female the process of identifying the victim was grueling on November 8th 2016 through the review of dental records it was confirmed that those remains were those of Grace Packer as investigators dug deeper more disturbing details began to surface despite Sarah Packer's claims of concern for her missing daughter evidence suggested otherwise Sarah had continued a post on Facebook sharing trivial details about her life but never once mentioned that Grace was missing family members reported that Sarah seemed unfazed by her daughter's disappearance even been cold and indifferent it was around this time when Jacob and Sarah broke up Jacob then began dating another woman named Catherine Albright as part of the investigation authorities were able to secure surveillance video from a local Tractor Supply the video shows Sarah purchasing a bow saw in two extra blades on October 16th 3 months after Grace was reported missing authorities were also able to recover Sarah's Bank transactions most notable was a purchase made at a local Target on July 8th 2016 the same day Sarah claimed that she last saw her daughter Grace the purchase Sarah made at the Target was for 32 Benadryl gel tabs as well as 24 capsules of Tylenol pm. and then on December 30th 2016 a chilling twist emerged Montgomery County Emergency Services received a 911 call from Katherine Albright reporting that her new boyfriend Jacob Sullivan had overdosed on pills and what appeared to be an attempt at removing himself from the earth Catherine hinted at a dark secret to dispatch during the call she said and I quote um there's there are a lot of reasons he would do this where oh God where I don't know if you have watched the news lately our someone we were involved with was recently it's a big mess it's a big mess and I don't really know how to explain it but oh my god when police arrived they found Jacob unconscious with a note beside him in it he confessed to being involved in something horrible something so terrible that he could no longer live with himself this handwritten note discovered by the police reads as follows and I quote dear babies I love you all so much you are the only people that I have always been able to count on I'm sorry that I am taking the coward's way out but I don't have any strength left in me people want to judge and lie and break me down they have I can't exist with Sarah in jail and those fing lying Pigs and the horor media have made it impossible for us to live they don't care how many lives or laws they break I know you will always know that we had nothing to do with this no matter what lies they tell I'm sorry to leave you remember all I've taught you be brave stand tall and do your best to be stronger than I was I love you Daddy end quote The elusive note only begins to scratch the surface regarding what actually happened to Grace from Jacob's hospital bed the full extent of that horror inevitably came to light following Jacob's failed attempt he confessed to the murder of Grace Packer implicating Sarah Packer as his accomplice during his confession Jacob told police that he and Sarah had begun plotting Grace's murder months before Grace returned from living with relatives in North Carolina told authorities he viewed his girlfriend's daughter as an ideal Target for multiple reasons Jacob told police Grace was a handful that she stole from him and her mother Sarah constantly that killing her was his form of payback for what the teen had put them through over the years in his words he admitted however that Revenge was not the sole motivation for this crime he confessed to authorities that he was a closeted rapist but in his own words a coward who finally built up enough courage to act out his Twisted Fantasy on July 8 2016 the day Sarah reported as the last time she saw Grace she and Jacob had driven Grace to their new residence in Quaker Town there they subjected her to unimaginable torture he recounted that on the morning of July 8 2016 he and Sarah transported Grace from their address at 819 Tennis Avenue in Abington Township to their new residence at 990 East Cherry Road in Quakertown Richland Township Grace dressed in her pajamas dozed off in the backseat of Jacob's vehicle during their Journey upon reaching the Quaker Town House they roused her from her sleep and led her inside Jacob said that's when he violently struck Grace in the face multiple times splitting her lip after the brutal assault Jacob and Sarah took Grace's limp body up to the third floor attic there Jacob admitted that he and Sarah had discussed his intentions to essay grace before killing her in the Attic which had been converted into a living space Jacob tore Grace's pajama top and a bit her breast while Sarah observed he confessed that Sarah was aroused by witnessing these acts before proceeding Jacob admitted to taking Viagra to prepare himself he then forced Grace to endure a horrific assault from his hospital bed he explicitly described the act in graphic detail Grace was conscious throughout the entire ordeal now at this point in the confession Jacob admitted to authorities that this was not the first time he assaulted Grace he confessed to having sa her on two prior occasions in the days leading up to her murder Jacob revealed that after the initial assault Sarah left the house to obtain medication intended to sedate her own daughter when she returned they gave Grace the pills telling her they would help ease the pain once drugged Grace Grace was bound and gagged before being left to die in a cedar closet within the stifling heat of the third floor attic Jacob later described the attic as unbearably hot after leaving Grace in this torturous environment Jacob and Sarah returned to their home in Abington around 3:00 a.
m. the pair returned to the Quaker Town residents fully expecting to find Grace dead from the combination of the assault the drugs and the oppressive heat they are surprised they discover the teenager still clinging to to life we managed to spit out the gag and partially free herself from the bindings tragically her Escape efforts went no further than that in response to finding Grace alive Jacob positioned himself behind her wrapping his arm around her neck and face and methodically choked the life out of her later admitted that the Act was far more physically demanding and timec consuming than he had anticipated the horror did not end there he dismembered Grace's body using tools purchased just days Pride during the search of the Quaker Town residence authorities recovered a receipt from the tractor supply store in Bucks County Pennsylvania dated October 16th 2016 the purchase was for a bow saw and two extra blades authorities were unable to recover the tools that were used on Grace's body following the dismemberment Jacob and Sarah stored Grace's remains in a box filled with kitty litter where she was left to decomposed for several months during his confession to police Jacob told authorities that he and Sarah were set to be evicted from their home at the time Grace was reported missing the two adoptive parents came under increased public scrutiny regarding The Disappearance of 14-year-old Grace the couple ultimately decided to dump Grace's remains in the woods at which time they made a death paact clearly the two failed in that part of their plan however when police asked Jacob his intent when it came to disposing Grace remains specifically he stated the following and I quote just be as mindful as possible it wasn't a good thing to do obviously a huge mistake never again I just don't want to be murdered in jail end quote the confessions of Jacob and Sarah shock the community How could a mother someone entrusted with the care of a child not only condone but actively participate in such a heinous crime Sarah Packer who had once been a foster care Advocate was now a monster the details of this case were so disturbing that even seasoned investigators struggled to comprehend the level of Cruelty involved Sarah and Jacob were charged with first deegree murder in January of 2017 Grace's funeral was held at the new life Presbyterian Church in Glenside Pennsylvania many of the attendees didn't know Grace personally but came to pay their respects to the young girl who had lived a tortured life right up until the day she was brutally murdered four other mothers of students in the Abington School District where Grace previously attended School organized to GoFundMe to date the campaign has erised over $14,000 the funds were used for Grace's Memorial while the rest were donated to the nonprofit called on Grace's Wings which is a group created to help children in the foster care system as well as victims of DV with a safe transition to a better life the organization's mission is to recruit volunteers willing to serve as advocates for foster children and to provide an extra layer of oversight as children transition into what will hopefully be a safe and forever home the same year Grace was laid to rest Northampton County announced that it had ceased placing children through the impact project after discovering that the agency may have been aware of reports of abusive Behavior by Sarah Packer more than a decade before she was charged in connection with Grace's death on June 29th 2018 a complaint was filed in Philadelphia County on behalf of Grace Packers estate fining alleges negligence negligence per se wrongful death and survival act claims against Sarah Packer David Packer and Jacob Sullivan the defendants who were wrongfully granted the opportunity to foster adopt and administer Behavioral Health Services to Grace throughout her life as a result an 8.
