By Ashley Garst
C1 Associate Editor
Most corrections officers concern themselves solely with locking down their living prisoners, but two officers from the Luzerne County Correctional Facility (Pa.) are making sure the dead don’t bother us, either.
Tony Pointkowski and Jim Fazzi founded their paranormal research group, Deadline Paranormal, in the summer of 2011 after a late night discussion at work got them talking about their childhood experiences.
Their first investigation, which had them looking into a local legend, happened only a month later.
“What started out as a fun adventure evolved into our first referral,” Fazzi wrote in an email interview. “We were looking for the local legend named ‘the Bagunk’ in Glen Lyon Pennsylvania. We had some unexplainable experiences, like we did when we were both younger.”
This sparked a bigger interest for the pair that they were on the right track with their venture. Today, the group has completed over 20 cases in the course of three years.
“Our work as corrections officers is tied into our investigations,” Fazzi wrote. “With all the training that we’ve received over the years, this is a big part of how we look at or look into different incidents.
“Being in corrections, there isn’t much we haven’t seen or experienced. With that being said, we apply our knowledge that has been instilled in us into the field of the unknown.”
Pointkowski grew up in what believes was a haunted house, while Fazzi is a believer in the paranormal, making them both perfect for this line of work. Fazzi does what he can to approach a situation with a skeptical mindset.
“I believe most things that present themselves have a reason or an explanation,” Fazzi wrote. “There are times that I am left without either an explanation or a reason. Jim has had an experience where he saw a full body apparition of a lady when he was in his teens that can’t be explained.”
Deadline Paranormal is not only a research-based team, but also a resoltuion-oriented one. While they gather data, the pair investigate whether or not they can end the paranormal activity and give those who are affected their lives back.
The group also does far more than just investigate ghosts. They’ve sold bracelets to raise money and awareness for leukemia research, and most recently participated in a walk for their fallen coworker Jeff Strouse. In Strouse’s memory, they’ve made a donation to The American Heart Association.
“Our work is 100 percent charity,” Fazzi wrote. “We do this to advance the field of parascience and because we enjoy helping our community. This is important to us!”