A Harrisburg man already facing bank robbery charges in York County is charged with attempting to rob a bank in East Cocalico Township, police announced Tuesday.
Shannon Steckbeck, 59, walked into a Truist Bank in the 2600 block of North Reading Road (Route 272) on Nov. 14 and demanded a teller provide him with cash from the register, according to a criminal complaint filed by police.
Police say the teller initially assumed it was a joke before Steckbeck repeated his demand. The teller handed over $2,300 from the register. No weapon was displayed during the robbery. Steckbeck was seen leaving in a black Volkswagen Jetta.
Police in York county arrested Steckbeck outside a Days Inn on Nov. 21 without incident.
Steckbeck had previously been convicted of robbing banks in Columbia Borough and York County in 2017.
According to LNP | LancasterOnline reporting at the time, Steckbeck was being given a ride home after drinking at a tavern on Jan. 28, 2017, when he asked the man driving him to stop at the Union Community Bank in Columbia Borough. Once inside, Steckbeck demanded money from the register. The Columbia man who had been giving him a ride later identified him to police.
Just a few days before the robbery in Columbia, Steckbeck robbed a York County bank by claiming to have a bomb.
At the January 5, 2026 Columbia Borough Council Organizational meeting, District Justice Miles Bixler administered the oath of office to the following people:
Leo Lutz—mayor
Tom Ziegler, Jr.—councilor
Jeanne Cooper—councilor
Ethan Byers—councilor
All four prevailed in the November 2025 election.
Council subsequently elected Vice-President Eric Kauffman as council president. Heather Zink, who held the position previously, made the nomination, which was voted on unanimously.
Councilor Ethan Byers nominated Zink for vice president. Council voted unanimously to elect Zink.
Kelly Murphy was elected to the position of borough council president pro tem. Zink made the nomination, which council voted on unanimously.
Council also voted to appoint the following borough officers:
Jack Brommer—borough manager/secretary/treasurer/open records officer
Paula Diffenderfer—assistant open records officer
Elyse Crawford—zoning officer
Evan Gabel—borough solicitor
C. S. Davidson—borough engineer
Councilor Joanne Geesey did not attend the meeting.
Kauffman: I would like to consider reopening the budget and possibly raising taxes
JOE LINTNER | COLUMBIA SPY
Shortly after being seated as the newly elected Columbia Borough Council president Monday night, Eric Kauffman suggested reopening the budget and raising taxes for 2026.
“I would like to consider reopening the budget and possibly raising taxes,“ Kauffman said, noting that reserves had fallen below the recommended 15% of the general fund. However, Kauffman had already voted to adopt the current budget at the December 9, 2025 council meeting.
Council would need to raise taxes by at least two-and-a-half mills to make up the $1.1 million it took from reserves to balance the budget. Doing so would put the total municipal tax rate at 12.5 mills. The millage increase would add $250 annually for a property assessed at $100,000. Kauffman said council will look at the issue at its next meeting on January 13, 2026.
Council adopted the current budget on December 9, 2025, with no tax increase but with a considerable drawdown of reserves.
Council voted unanimously to adopt the $17.80 million budget for 2026. The approximately $300,000 remaining in reserves is considerably lower than the recommended minimum of 15% of expenditures in general fund reserves.
Council also voted to keep the millage the same—at 10 mills—although council members Kelly Murphy and Joanne Geesey voted against the measure, without explanation.
In December 2024, council raised taxes by 2 mills —from 8 to 10 mills—for 2025. Raising taxes for this year would be the second hike in a row.
Columbia Borough Council Vice-President Eric Kauffman was elected council president at Monday night’s council organizational meeting. Heather Zink, who held the position previously, made the nomination, which was voted on unanimously. Zink was elected vice president.
District Justice Miles Bixler swore in Leo Lutz for another term as mayor. Bixler also swore in Tom Ziegler, Jr, Jeanne Cooper, and Ethan Byers as councilors.
As practically everyone in town knows by now, Chris Vera, former Columbia Market House Manager, was fired from his position and then—incredibly—banned from all borough property. Although the ban was lifted recently, questions remain, and the public deserves answers.
Borough Solicitor Evan Gabel sent Vera the Letter of No Trespass, but one wonders if he recognized the constitutional issues inherent in banning a citizen from public property without due process. The ACLU and others have called the ban “unconstitutional” [LINK].
“Letter of No Trespass” from Solicitor Evan M. Gabel
The identities of those who ordered the ban remain elusive. Former Borough Manager Steve Kaufhold authorized the firing but did not publicly admit to ordering the ban [LINK]. So, who authorized the “ban letter”? Most likely, Gabel didn’t act alone but was directed to write it by officials “behind the scenes.”
“Letter of Termination” from former Borough Manager Steven M. Kaufhold
By banning Vera from public property, officials essentially branded him a threat to the community; the borough, in essence, deemed him so dangerous he wasn’t allowed to set foot on a public sidewalk or in a public building.
At the March 27, 2025 borough council meeting, Mayor Leo Lutz tried to justify the ban by claiming that banning former employees was “standard procedure” [LINK]. However, at the June 3 council workshop, Vice President Eric Kauffman said that is not a standard policy [LINK].
The borough will inevitably hide behind “personnel matters” to avoid transparency, but that excuse doesn’t work here. Once officials ban a citizen, the issue stops being a personnel issue and becomes a matter of rights and accountability.
In addition, legal fees for this boneheaded misadventure have no doubt run into the thousands. Residents are paying for this mistake and have a right to know the cost. There are other costs, too, including harm to a citizen’s reputation and the erosion of public confidence.
So, why did it take so long to reverse a decision that was indefensible in the first place? Who benefited? What did the borough think justified these actions? Those questions need to be answered, but for officials, it will no doubt be “business as usual,” without apology or explanation.
Some residents are already saying that since the ban has been lifted, it’s now time to move on. But without consequences, there’s no accountability, and without an accounting of what happened and why, the black eye Columbia gave itself will continue to fester.
The residents of Columbia deserve better than officials who make such poor decisions. We deserve officials who tell the truth, not contradictory stories.
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Columbia Spy 