AZ AZ - Jarrett Brooks, 16, last seen near I-40, Joseph City area, 4 Jul 2023

[Knox]

Like many teenagers, sometimes Jarrett also got in trouble. One of those times happened the night before he disappeared when he was grounded for damaging one of the family’s vehicles.

It was the fourth time the teenager had gotten in trouble for taking the vehicle off-roading, the latest time breaking something on the vehicle even after he’d been told not to go off-road again.

https://www.newsnationnow.com/missing/jarrett-brooks/

Jarrett had been grounded the previous evening after his parents discovered he'd broken the family car's CV axle by driving the car off-road, which he had been warned not to do three times before.

Haunting footage shows final moments of missing teen cowboy

Jarrett Brooks, 16, was filmed on his parents' security cameras creeping around the house in Joseph City, Arizona, on July 4, 2023, before sneaking out and disappearing.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[Knox]

Jarrett had been grounded the previous evening after his parents discovered he'd broken the family car's CV axle by driving the car off-road, which he had been warned not to do three times before.

Laura, who was the last family member to see him, said she bumped into him in the hallway on her way to have a shower about 6:15 am.

'He asked me if he was grounded from everything or just driving, and I told him everything. And then, I went into the bathroom to take my shower,' she said.

'He seemed fine, he just said, "OK", and turned around and went to his room. He didn't argue it, he didn't huff and puff or show any attitude.'

Laura explained that she discovered Jarrett had broken the $100 car part when he turned in his phone, as all their children are required to do before bed so they don't get distracted instead of sleeping.

Phones were also subject to random checks, and Laura founds texts between Jarrett and his friends discovering how to fix the car before his parents found out.

When Laura got out of the shower about 15 minutes later, Jarrett was gone - but it wasn't until about 6:45 am when she realized he wasn't at the house.

While his mother was in the shower, Jarrett had grabbed the gun, changed into his pants and boots, and slipped out of the house undetected.

Haunting footage shows final moments of missing teen cowboy

Jarrett Brooks, 16, was filmed on his parents' security cameras creeping around the house in Joseph City, Arizona, on July 4, 2023, before sneaking out and disappearing.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[mlhenn]

Jarrett's parents still had his phone, and his wallet - containing his license and cash - was found in the pocket of a pair of gym shorts in his car.

Was his car a different one from the one he messed up?
I ask that because if it was, why didn’t he just leave in his car instead of walking?

Haunting footage shows final moments of missing teen cowboy

Jarrett Brooks, 16, was filmed on his parents' security cameras creeping around the house in Joseph City, Arizona, on July 4, 2023, before sneaking out and disappearing.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[Knox]

Jarrett's parents still had his phone, and his wallet - containing his license and cash - was found in the pocket of a pair of gym shorts in his car.

Was his car a different one from the one he messed up?
I ask that because if it was, why didn’t he just leave in his car instead of walking?

Haunting footage shows final moments of missing teen cowboy

Jarrett Brooks, 16, was filmed on his parents' security cameras creeping around the house in Joseph City, Arizona, on July 4, 2023, before sneaking out and disappearing.

www.dailymail.co.uk

That's not clear and may be an error on the part of the reporter. But if I had to guess, the vehicle keys were likely taken by the parents and he had no access. Not a stretch to say, look what they do with the kids cell phones every night ...

 

[Dotta]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1827403446367990211

 

[mlhenn]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1827403446367990211

Jarrett is believed to have been spotted by local rancher Joe Zabadal striding through his pasture about a mile from the house just after 7 am.

'I saw what I saw... He wasn't abducted, he walked away under his own power.

'I see somebody wandering across my pasture and I think "what the hell?" so I got in my side-by-side and I went back to my corral and I looked through my binoculars,' he said Zabadal told him.

He drove around and came back north along Lacy Lane while Tom went south, 'and when they met in the middle, there was no sign of Jarrett', Brooks said.

'Joe said it was probably 10 or 12 minutes from the time he left his corral that he got back around there - so in that time Jarrett was gone.

Zabadal saw Jarrett climb under the fence in this photo and pace back and forth along the road at this concrete water crossing

Rancher who last saw missing teen cowboy alive breaks his silence

Jarrett Brooks, 16, was seen on his parents' security cameras grabbing a pistol at the house in Joseph City, Arizona , about 6:30 am on July 4 last year, and was seen heading out of town.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[Knox]

It’s good to finally get a first hand account of what he saw that day. So according to his account, Jarrett was almost certainly picked up by someone.

 

[Valiant]

Sadly the rancher had to speak out because he was accused of harming Jarrett.
Everyone rushes to judge anyone around someone who disappears.

 

[Angelcat13]

It’s good to finally get a first hand account of what he saw that day. So according to his account, Jarrett was almost certainly picked up by someone.

Or - and I can’t help but think this because of the recent Caleb Harris case and one that happened in my own area - could he have fallen in an old mine shaft or well?

 

[Knox]

Or - and I can’t help but think this because of the recent Caleb Harris case and one that happened in my own area - could he have fallen in an old mine shaft or well?

I like your thought, but I think they would have searched for those possibilities a year ago?

 

[Angelcat13]

I like your thought, but I think they would have searched for those possibilities a year ago?

I agree and would hope so, too.

 

[Knox]

I agree and would hope so, too.

He seems to have disappeared into thin air. A vehicle picking him up makes the most sense. But how did he arrange that? His parents seem to think he could have had a burner phone.

 

[Dotta]

This teen seemed to live under strict discipline at home.
Like phone taken in the evening and checked by parents.

I guess there was no excitement in the neighborhood also.
Only pastures and farms.

IMO
he just decided to escape and get lost in a big city.

I hope he is OK.
He should somehow let his parents know how he is.
They are suffering.

But what about his education?
He was only 16 when he vanished.

JMO

 

[housewife]

Jarrett is believed to have been spotted by local rancher Joe Zabadal striding through his pasture about a mile from the house just after 7 am.

'I saw what I saw... He wasn't abducted, he walked away under his own power.

'I see somebody wandering across my pasture and I think "what the hell?" so I got in my side-by-side and I went back to my corral and I looked through my binoculars,' he said Zabadal told him.

He drove around and came back north along Lacy Lane while Tom went south, 'and when they met in the middle, there was no sign of Jarrett', Brooks said.

'Joe said it was probably 10 or 12 minutes from the time he left his corral that he got back around there - so in that time Jarrett was gone.

Zabadal saw Jarrett climb under the fence in this photo and pace back and forth along the road at this concrete water crossing

Rancher who last saw missing teen cowboy alive breaks his silence

Jarrett Brooks, 16, was seen on his parents' security cameras grabbing a pistol at the house in Joseph City, Arizona , about 6:30 am on July 4 last year, and was seen heading out of town.

www.dailymail.co.uk

These quotes below confirmed my suspicions. IMO he had a burner phone. I hope it's still possible to get cell tower ping info a YEAR after he disappeared.
And we should still search for "runaway" teens because they are minors in danger!

"But he admitted the teen may have had a burner phone they didn't know about - like some of the other youths in town

"He said he was frustrated the police, after 13 months, were yet to comb through phone and WiFi traffic to identify an unknown device that Jarrett could have used, and Geofence phones active near where he disappeared that morning"

"The Navajo County Sheriff's Office was notified at 12:28 pm, and Jarrett was initially treated as a teenage runaway."

"They also became increasingly frustrated with the slow pace of the investigation and Jarrett continuing to be treated as a runaway, not a juvenile in danger - which has only recently changed."

Emphasis mine.

 

[mlhenn]

Officials still searching for missing Joseph City teen Jarrett Brooks 1 year later

JOSEPH CITY, Ariz. — On Independence Day last year, 16-year-old Jarrett Brooks discovered he was grounded, retrieved a handgun from his father’s safe, and swiftly walked across a neighbor’s ranch

www.nhonews.com

However, Jarrett was grounded after taking his father’s off-roading vehicle without permission the night before and causing minor damage.

…

As Laura showered, she reconsidered Jarrett’s punishment, and was planning on discussing a compromise with him when she got out, but by then, Jarrett was already gone.

…

However, since it was confirmed that Jarrett took a gun before his disappearance, she said it has been more challenging to get agencies to treat it as a missing person’s case rather than a potential suicide.

“Initially, a lot of aspects of this case (were) mishandled by law enforcement and search and rescue teams and all of that,” she said. “There was a huge lack of communication between law enforcement and us as the family. I can say in the last six months that has changed dramatically and we now have a decent working relationship with the sheriff’s office.”

Another challenge has been dealing with rumors.

…

Currently, there is a $50,000 reward for information leading to Jarrett’s safe return and another $25,000 for the successful location and physical recovery of Jarrett. That reward expires on Dec. 7, which will be Jarrett’s 18th birthday.

Jarrett’s case remains open, but because of the lack of leads, it has been placed into inactive status as far as detectives working on it daily, Swanty said. Strategically, the office has to look at the case as a homicide now, he said.

 

[housewife]

Officials still searching for missing Joseph City teen Jarrett Brooks 1 year later

JOSEPH CITY, Ariz. — On Independence Day last year, 16-year-old Jarrett Brooks discovered he was grounded, retrieved a handgun from his father’s safe, and swiftly walked across a neighbor’s ranch

www.nhonews.com

However, Jarrett was grounded after taking his father’s off-roading vehicle without permission the night before and causing minor damage.

…

As Laura showered, she reconsidered Jarrett’s punishment, and was planning on discussing a compromise with him when she got out, but by then, Jarrett was already gone.

…

However, since it was confirmed that Jarrett took a gun before his disappearance, she said it has been more challenging to get agencies to treat it as a missing person’s case rather than a potential suicide.

“Initially, a lot of aspects of this case (were) mishandled by law enforcement and search and rescue teams and all of that,” she said. “There was a huge lack of communication between law enforcement and us as the family. I can say in the last six months that has changed dramatically and we now have a decent working relationship with the sheriff’s office.”

Another challenge has been dealing with rumors.

…

Currently, there is a $50,000 reward for information leading to Jarrett’s safe return and another $25,000 for the successful location and physical recovery of Jarrett. That reward expires on Dec. 7, which will be Jarrett’s 18th birthday.

Jarrett’s case remains open, but because of the lack of leads, it has been placed into inactive status as far as detectives working on it daily, Swanty said. Strategically, the office has to look at the case as a homicide now, he said.

Why... why would the reward expire?
I don't understand the strategy here.

 

[Valiant]

Why... why would the reward expire?
I don't understand the strategy here.

Many times the rewards come from third parties. If there’s no action on one case they reward money goes to another case.

 

[AZDesertGal]

Several posts mentioned that Jarrett's trail ended on a trail or in a field. Were there any horses in that field? Did somebody have a horse end up further away from their house than what would be normal? Just a wild thought on my part, but that would allow him to move out of the area much faster.