MI MI - Jessica Heeringa, 25, Norton Shores, 26 April 2013 #9 (J. Willis GUILTY)

[michmi]

'A kidnapping suspect is now facing open murder charges in connection to the 2014 unsolved killing of jogger Rebekah Bletsch.

The Muskegon County Prosecutor filed the charges Monday morning against Jeffrey Willis, who was arrested last week for attempting to abduct a 16-year-old girl in April.

Jeffrey Willis is now charged with one count of open murder and one count of felony firearms in connection to the June 2014 shooting death of Bletsch. Police said the 36-year-old mother was out jogging less than a mile from her home in rural Dalton Township when she was shot and left for dead. She had been shot in the head, none of her belongings were taken."

http://fox17online.com/2016/05/25/bletsch-willis/

I'm happy for Rebekah's family that he's been charged and now pray that there is evidence to charge in Jessica's abduction. The young lady who escaped from him is probably amazed at how she was able to help in these unsolved cases. God bless her.

 

[gregjrichards]

I'm happy for Rebekah's family that he's been charged and now pray that there is evidence to charge in Jessica's abduction. The young lady who escaped from him is probably amazed at how she was able to help in these unsolved cases. God bless her.

I feel the same way. I wonder how the young woman is coping it's hard enough being 16 without something of this magnitude happening to you. I hope she gets the therapy she needs and this incident doesn't negatively affect her whole life. She is very lucky and very brave.

Thank you to all of you for your news posts and discussion it is much appreciated. Hopefully we will have more news about Jessica's case soon.

 

[gregjrichards]

MUSKEGON, Mich. (WOOD) — The man accused of murdering a woman and trying to abduct a teen in Muskegon County frequented the gas station from which Jessica Heeringa vanished in 2013, sources confirmed 24 Hour News 8.

http://woodtv.com/2016/05/25/sources-willis-frequented-heeringas-gas-station/

 

[slippers]

I've seen conflicting reports that JW's van is the same make and model as the van seen leaving Exxon. Do we have a definitive opinion yet?

Sent from my 831C using Tapatalk

This is also what I have been wondering; have heard conflicting reports......I really do think the original report was wrong and he has had the same silver van all along.

 

[Teche]

MUSKEGON, Mich. (WOOD) — The man accused of murdering a woman and trying to abduct a teen in Muskegon County frequented the gas station from which Jessica Heeringa vanished in 2013, sources confirmed 24 Hour News 8.
lhttp://woodtv.com/2016/05/25/sources-willis-frequented-heeringas-gas-station/

There you go!

 

[cebee]

http://westmipolitics.blogspot.com/2016/05/wow-psychic-sketch-of-heeringa-abductor.html
http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2016/05/21/timeline-crimes-muskegon-county/84705140/

I am not usually a believer in psychics- but I remember way back in the beginning a psychic made the top sketch, and I seem to recall him/her saying she would be found by a body of water... ( I am local and have been following Jessicas case since day 1) The sketch is Oh My God identical. They could have been drawing Willis standing in front of them! Does anyone else remember what the psychic said? It was way back in the beginning...

 

[Flutterby80]

I want to hear JW speak. Has anyone found video of him speaking complete sentences? CV from the guitar store said the man in the silver van who he heard speaking to Jessica by the gas pumps earlier on the day she disappeared had a distinctive voice. I never saw it clarified if he meant an accent, a lisp, or some other distinct feature, but I would really like to hear JW speak!

 

[trenchmouth]

I want to hear JW speak. Has anyone found video of him speaking complete sentences? CV from the guitar store said the man in the silver van who he heard speaking to Jessica by the gas pumps earlier on the day she disappeared had a distinctive voice. I never saw it clarified if he meant an accent, a lisp, or some other distinct feature, but I would really like to hear JW speak!

Me too. He had a few one word responses in court today, difficult to hear him.

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[dotr]

[video=youtube;BnU3dqMiBlw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnU3dqMiBlw[/video]
Published on May 25, 2016

Co-workers said they all went to the gas station from which Jessica Heeringa vanished in 2013, and now they think Jeffrey Willis took her.

(May 25, 2015)

 

[gregjrichards]

I want to hear JW speak. Has anyone found video of him speaking complete sentences? CV from the guitar store said the man in the silver van who he heard speaking to Jessica by the gas pumps earlier on the day she disappeared had a distinctive voice. I never saw it clarified if he meant an accent, a lisp, or some other distinct feature, but I would really like to hear JW speak!

Yes it would be interesting but I don't know when we will get the chance to hear him speak. I can't even stand looking at him to be honest but at least he wasn't smirking in court like he was in the mugshot.

I wonder what kind of drugs were found in his van and where he got them from. It would be sedatives if I was to guess.

 

[ArianeEmory]

Wow, I never expected to see any progress on this case. Hoping for evidence.

 

[Roselvr]

I agree I know he is just one of a list of 'Persons of Interest' but I will be shocked and stunned if he isn't responsible for this. If they have found photos or video or DNA comes back on any of her clothing they may have found his goose is cooked.

The article I posted 2 days ago said they did connect him to Jess, they just haven't tied him to taking her.

Teen's daring escape may help solve 2 cold cases
Elisha Anderson and Tresa Baldas, Detroit Free Press 11:11 a.m. EDT May 22, 2016

Willis hasn’t talked to authorities since he was taken into custody, and his home, van and another property, once owned by his grandfather on Bailey Street in Norton Shores, were searched for evidence.

Muskegon County Undersheriff Daniel Stout said the evidence seized makes Willis a suspect in Heeringa’s disappearance and Bletsch’s homicide, but he would not reveal specifically what investigators found that led them to that conclusion.

“The weapon is a similar model that would have shot the bullets in the Bletsch case,” Stout said. “Similar … but similar is a big word.”

Hundreds of items, including computers, multiple phones, clothes and documents, are being analyzed along with evidence recovered from the van, including the pistol.

Investigators say they found locked boxes when they searched Willis' 2006 silver Dodge Grand Caravan. Officials said one had handcuffs, chains, rope, five syringes — including one with liquid, possibly a sedative — photographs of females chained and bound, a mask and rubber gloves and another had a gun with the serial number destroyed.

I thought I heard the police asked Chrysler to identify the van leaving Exxon seen on surveillance camera and they said it was a T & C?

You're correct.

Actually, the video does show conclusively that Willis' van is NOT the van on tape leaving the Exxon. That's if the info thus far made public is to be taken at face value. The 2013 streetview image of his house shows that the silver van parked in his driveway definitely has a black stripe on the right side, and the van caught on the Coin Zone surveillance tape definitely does not.

Here they are side-by-side:
View attachment 95334

As much as common sense and the hope of solving Jessica's disappearance might invite us to think so, they just aren't the same vehicle.

But again, I wouldn't say that necessarily means that he isn't responsible. It's possible that he purchased a new silver van shortly before or after the abduction. It's possible that due to some human error the van on the Coin Zone video isn't the same silver van that was seen earlier at the Exxon. It's possible that the van parked outside his house in the Google picture doesn't belong to him.

I don't think any of us can say either way because we don't know his vehicle history yet. Would be helpful if one of his coworkers would tell us if he had the same van or not back then. It's possible he borrowed a van, possible he got rid of it. If he did get rid of it, LE should be able to track it down unless it's in the crusher.

https://www.facebook.com/wzzm13/?fref=photo

Held without bond

Which post are you trying to link to the court appearance? To link to a FB post, see either the date or time, in this one it's the time in an older post it would be date with time. The page name on the post always links to the main page.

WZZM 13 Grand Rapids was live. - 19 hrs ·

BREAKING: Kidnapping suspect Jeffrey Willis arraigned on murder, child *advertiser censored* charges. Judge orders him held with no bond.

I feel the same way. I wonder how the young woman is coping it's hard enough being 16 without something of this magnitude happening to you. I hope she gets the therapy she needs and this incident doesn't negatively affect her whole life. She is very lucky and very brave.

Thank you to all of you for your news posts and discussion it is much appreciated. Hopefully we will have more news about Jessica's case soon.

I'm sure she is blown away with each report. I really hope she gets therapy or one of the others that have also survived something like this, reach out to LE to try to speak to her. There was one a week or 2 ago that escaped one of the 80's serial killers.

[video=youtube;BnU3dqMiBlw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnU3dqMiBlw[/video]
Published on May 25, 2016

(May 25, 2015)

Wow, I just got chills seeing his face at the end, something about it, looks like the sketch. If anyone catches the report with the manager please post it.

Really interesting to me that it looks like he just finished crying in the video and I wonder what he's crying about. Crying because he knows he got caught and won't be getting out. My biggest fear is he's been doing this for years. I wonder how many more we do not know about.

Praying he tries to cut a deal with Jess's remains. Her family, especially her little boy need a place to visit her. All I keep thinking about is her mom crying on the Disappeared episode. I can't imagine the pain mom, grandma and her sister have right now. They feel Jess is alive.

 

[gregjrichards]

The article I posted 2 days ago said they did connect him to Jess, they just haven't tied him to taking her.

Teen's daring escape may help solve 2 cold cases
Elisha Anderson and Tresa Baldas, Detroit Free Press 11:11 a.m. EDT May 22, 2016





You're correct.



I don't think any of us can say either way because we don't know his vehicle history yet. Would be helpful if one of his coworkers would tell us if he had the same van or not back then. It's possible he borrowed a van, possible he got rid of it. If he did get rid of it, LE should be able to track it down unless it's in the crusher.



Which post are you trying to link to the court appearance? To link to a FB post, see either the date or time, in this one it's the time in an older post it would be date with time. The page name on the post always links to the main page.

WZZM 13 Grand Rapids was live. - 19 hrs ·





I'm sure she is blown away with each report. I really hope she gets therapy or one of the others that have also survived something like this, reach out to LE to try to speak to her. There was one a week or 2 ago that escaped one of the 80's serial killers.



Wow, I just got chills seeing his face at the end, something about it, looks like the sketch. If anyone catches the report with the manager please post it.

Really interesting to me that it looks like he just finished crying in the video and I wonder what he's crying about. Crying because he knows he got caught and won't be getting out. My biggest fear is he's been doing this for years. I wonder how many more we do not know about.

Praying he tries to cut a deal with Jess's remains. Her family, especially her little boy need a place to visit her. All I keep thinking about is her mom crying on the Disappeared episode. I can't imagine the pain mom, grandma and her sister have right now. They feel Jess is alive.

Thanks for this post this is my fear also. I just hope they can find Jessica. It worries me he already knows he is likely going to be in jail for the rest of his life so what incentive does he have to talk about his other crimes. I don't like him being offered things like a better jail for example to talk but it might be necessary. I understand from social media the police etc were back at his grandfather's house yesterday I wonder if they have found anything in addition to what we have been told.

 

[sfbaynancydrew]

"Family: Police looking at ’96 death in Willis investigation"

http://woodtv.com/2016/05/26/family-police-looking-1996-death-in-willis-investigation/

 

[Alikatcla]

"Family: Police looking at ’96 death in Willis investigation"

http://woodtv.com/2016/05/26/family-police-looking-1996-death-in-willis-investigation/

What jumped out at me was the serial killer in Grand Rapids. Who was that and was he ever caught.

 

[DexterMorgan]

Ole Willis seems to be a predator and children *advertiser censored* lover. May he rot in hell along with any lawyer that is truly fighting for his freedom.

 

[ZooSleuth]

What jumped out at me was the serial killer in Grand Rapids. Who was that and was he ever caught.

Found these:
http://articles.latimes.com/1996-11-10/news/mn-63252_1_task-force
https://news.google.com/newspapers?...AIBAJ&sjid=RVUDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2698,2873218&hl=en

 

[ZooSleuth]

And more:
https://books.google.com/books?id=g...DL4Q6AEILzAE#v=onepage&q=grand rapids&f=false

It appears they are all unsolved to this day.

ETA: I find it interesting that the first murder by the unconfirmed Grand Rapids serial killer dumped her body 40 miles to the northwest of Grand Rapids in Muskegon County.

Do we have any information about where Willis lived or what he did for a job from the time he graduated HS in 1988 to the time he was working at a school in 1998? I think we should try to sleuth him for this time period.

 

[Alikatcla]

And more:
https://books.google.com/books?id=g...DL4Q6AEILzAE#v=onepage&q=grand rapids&f=false

It appears they are all unsolved to this day.

ETA: I find it interesting that the first murder by the unconfirmed Grand Rapids serial killer dumped her body 40 miles to the northwest of Grand Rapids in Muskegon County.

Do we have any information about where Willis lived or what he did for a job from the time he graduated HS in 1988 to the time he was working at a school in 1998? I think we should try to sleuth him for this time period.

We need to put together a timeline on him. I'm going to go back and look at some of the earlier articles they mentioned places he worked. Do we know what year he was married?

 

[dotr]

"Family: Police looking at ’96 death in Willis investigation"

http://woodtv.com/2016/05/26/family-police-looking-1996-death-in-willis-investigation/

http://woodtv.com/2016/05/26/family-police-looking-1996-death-in-willis-investigation/

MUSKEGON, Mich. (WOOD) — The family of a teen who died in the Muskegon area nearly 20 years ago says they have been in contact with police, who are looking in to whether Jeffrey Willis may have killed her.

The partially-clothed body of 15-year-old Angela Thornburg was found by a hunter on Oct. 17, 1996 in the woods in the area of I-96 and East Fruitport Road in Fruitport Township, southwest of Muskegon. The case was ruled a probable homicide, but no one was ever arrested in the case.

https://www.google.ca/search?q=Ange...hVMyoMKHSCHAsYQ_AUIBygC#imgrc=RqNiHDs8I349_M:


15-year-old Angela Thornburg