Reward offered for data in Derry Twp. slaying

Crime Stoppers is offering a cash reward of as much as $2,000 for information that leads to an arrest in the slaying of a Derry Township woman.

Samantha Joann Lang, 22, of 5397 Route 982, was discovered lying on the floor between her kitchen and living room with her throat slashed on March 28. She was found by a family friend who had stopped by to check on the residence about 9 p.m.

State police said the house was ransacked, indicating Lang struggled with her assailant and was forced to the floor before her throat was slashed.

Neighbors said Lang lived in the home with her father, James C. Lang Jr., 48, and her brother, James C. Lang III, 26. Both are inmates at the Westmoreland County Prison, with numerous drug-related charges, according to court records.

Days before Samantha Lang's death, the house was said to the scene of a noisy fight between two women that spilled outside, with clothes being strewn over the front yard.

Police described the house as a hub for drug trafficking in court documents filed before Derry District Judge Mark Bilik.

Lang's mother, Carol Polo, of Latrobe, said her daughter had started a job at Laurel Nursery in Unity Township just days before her death.

Anyone with information is asked to call 800-4PA-TIPS or state police in Greensburg at 724-832-3288. All callers remain anonymous.