MN - Jacob Wetterling, 11, St. Joseph, 22 Oct 1989 - #6

[KeepHopeAlive]

I'm going to go back to the stalker theory for a minute. Based on Jerry's feeling earlier in the day at the hockey rink, someone could have been watching Jacob. The abductor could have gone to the Wetterling residence later that night (it probably wasn't difficult to figure out the address, either by following them home, looking them up in the phone book, etc.) with the intention of kidnapping Jacob from his home (think Elizabeth Smart, Polly Klaas, etc.). When he discovered the boys were heading out on their bikes, he had to change his plans and headed northeast through the fields/woods (whatever was there) and caught up to the boys at the spot where Aaron heard the sound in the grass. Knowing the boys would be coming back, he had a few minutes to revise his plan and got into position at the end of the driveway and waited for them to return.

 

[cGorg]

I'm going to go back to the stalker theory for a minute. Based on Jerry's feeling earlier in the day at the hockey rink, someone could have been watching Jacob. The abductor could have gone to the Wetterling residence later that night (it probably wasn't difficult to figure out the address, either by following them home, looking them up in the phone book, etc.) with the intention of kidnapping Jacob from his home (think Elizabeth Smart, Polly Klaas, etc.). When he discovered the boys were heading out on their bikes, he had to change his plans and headed northeast through the fields/woods (whatever was there) and caught up to the boys at the spot where Aaron heard the sound in the grass. Knowing the boys would be coming back, he had a few minutes to revise his plan and got into position at the end of the driveway and waited for them to return.

I'm with you on this as a plausible explanation and think that what happened at the hockey rink is also significant. A few points:
1. vehicle: it's been stated that LE accounted for all of the tire tracks...but do we really know that for sure? the perp while on foot would have had to get to his car after seeing the boys pass by on bikes and then get the car in position.
2. perp asking the boys their age....Aaron states in the video that they could barely see each other's faces in the dark....would the perp's questioning of age be for voice recognition? if the perp was at the hockey arena more than once he would have been able to hear Jacob's voice.
3. perp in black...again clergy or LE as typical of wearing black

 

[shergal]

Does anyone have a decent picture of Father Tom Gillespie? Just curious to compare it to the sketch from Jared. Didn't Jared's perp ask him if he recognized him? Wondering if that could have been b/c he was the priest in St Joes at the time??

I'm looking for a better picture, but here is one of how Fr. Tom looks now. His hair was blonde and he had more of it when he was younger. I'm searching through the old SJU newsletters to see if I can find a better one.

I enlarged this a bit from it's original source here:
https://www.andersonadvocates.com/PriestList/20/Father-Thomas-Gillespie.aspx

Jared would not have necessarily recognized a priest from St. Joe, because he lived in Cold Spring. Jared's abductor had to be someone who would be recognized in Cold Spring.

 

[shergal]

According to this bio, Fr. Tom did actually serve at St. Boniface Parish in Cold Spring, but it was in 1976-77, before Jared was born.

http://www.behindthepinecurtain.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Gillespie_Bio_Redacted.pdf

 

[cGorg]

So he'd be 71 in that picture. I find it disconcerting that pictures of possible perps are hard to come by. I could never find a picture of VS in his later years.

That is curious....in charge of computers....wonder if JG had an interest in Jacob's case?

 

[thenotebook]

Wasn't Josh googling things about priest abuse before he disappeared? I thought I read that they found that on his computer

 

[Pensfan]

Thanks shergal for another great map. ok...I give up...I am perplexed. I am still stuck on the possible perp in the grass on the west side of the road near the mailbox. I realize it is circumstantial and can never be proven but just the same am intrigued by it. IMO, if the perp was indeed in that position, then this is a very very narrow window of possible perps(logistically speaking..as in who would be in such an isolated place?). I can see the obvious scenario of DR out running or retrieving the mail and sees the flashlights in the distance and hiding in the grass while the boys pass by...or shergal's scenario of somebody walking or running and seeing the Wetterling parents leave the residence and thus plan a home invasion...but either scenario requires knowledge of who the boys were and where they lived. If in fact the sound in the grass heard by Aaron was an animal then my entire speculation is a moot point. Looking at the map, can anyone else think of a scenario that would place a perp near the abduction site on the west side of the road before the boys passed by?

One fact that can't be denied: Jacob was abducted at the intersection of the paved road + DR's driveway and forcibly walked(dragged?) EAST until the 2nd pole(1989)...THAT is telling.

Another thing that is telling is that the abductor wore a mask (hose). He wasn't from another town or out of state. He was worried that he would be recognized.

 

[Pensfan]

So he'd be 71 in that picture. I find it disconcerting that pictures of possible perps are hard to come by. I could never find a picture of VS in his later years.

That is curious....in charge of computers....wonder if JG had an interest in Jacob's case?

Hand-drawn composites by trained artists are roughly 9 percent accurate in terms of producing a recognizable likeness to a suspect [source: Avril].

Computer-generated composites statistically tend to be of even poorer quality than hand-drawn sketches, with around 5 percent accuracy

So why spend time and resources on police sketches if they're neurologically doomed for inaccuracy? Forensic artists argue that the role of police sketches isn't to construct a perfect portrait of the perpetrator. The point of police sketches is to publicize crimes, attract leading clues and get the public looking out for suspicious persons,
http://people.howstuffworks.com/police-sketch.htm

 

[Jbrown324320]

I think Jacob and Josh are two separate cases though. Done by two different people. BUT I do think the perpetrators knew each other or were in the same group. Josh was doing a research paper on the priest sexual abuse scandal and how he thought the offending monks should not live on campus. See findjoshua.com and behindthepinecurtain.com.

 

[Pensfan]

I didn't find any better pics of Fr. Tom, just the same pic a bit larger and this was from 2008.

(Side note: Interesting that Gillespie was in charge of computers and websites on the SJU campus - wonder if he was the one who wiped Josh Guimond's hard drive after Josh disappeared?)

Dan Rassier is also spends a lot of time with computers.
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/dan-rassier/30/452/39b

LE originally believed that there was only one desperate pedophile in their small, rural area. They tried to link Jared's molestation with Jacob's abduction because they didn't know that dozens of nearby monks were actively molesting or had molested possibly hundreds of children. LE may no longer believe the same sicko abducted Jacob and molested Jared.

Jacob's abductor lived in that community (needed a hose mask for some reason) and knew that additional sexual crimes against children would be blamed on Jared's molester and not him. When the opportunity presented itself (easy to grab Jacob and his home was empty of witnesses), he acted on his sicko fantasy thinking he'd never be suspected, IMO.

 

[Pensfan]

Where did a monk (no income independent of the monastery) get the money to take flying lessons and practice for his pilot's license? They take a vow of poverty and share all income with their monastery. Why does a monk need a pilot's license?

 

[human]

Wow. Good points pen.

A relative in the neighborhood sounds very intriguing to me.

The Rassier children seem to be very athletic

 

[Pensfan]

The Rassier parents attend mass daily. Their many boys would have been alter boys. The Rassier boys had contact with the monks at the church and at their school. Their exposure to the monks was high. What's the likelihood that Dan Rassier and his 2 brothers were sexually abused by St. John's monks?

 

[ELOCsoul]

Hand-drawn composites by trained artists are roughly 9 percent accurate in terms of producing a recognizable likeness to a suspect [source: Avril].

Computer-generated composites statistically tend to be of even poorer quality than hand-drawn sketches, with around 5 percent accuracy

So why spend time and resources on police sketches if they're neurologically doomed for inaccuracy? Forensic artists argue that the role of police sketches isn't to construct a perfect portrait of the perpetrator. The point of police sketches is to publicize crimes, attract leading clues and get the public looking out for suspicious persons,
http://people.howstuffworks.com/police-sketch.htm

Not to mention...how does one draw a sketch of a man masked in the dark of night?!? I think LE made an early assumption that Jared and Jacob's cases were connected, and just ran with it. Once the car mystery was solved, they gradually backpedaled from the connection theory.

They might well be connected in some way, but still committed by different persons.

 

[ELOCsoul]

Dan Rassier is also spends a lot of time with computers.
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/dan-rassier/30/452/39b

LE originally believed that there was only one desperate pedophile in their small, rural area. They tried to link Jared's molestation with Jacob's abduction because they didn't know that dozens of nearby monks were actively molesting or had molested possibly hundreds of children. LE may no longer believe the same sicko abducted Jacob and molested Jared.

Jacob's abductor lived in that community (needed a hose mask for some reason) and knew that additional sexual crimes against children would be blamed on Jared's molester and not him. When the opportunity presented itself (easy to grab Jacob and his home was empty of witnesses), he acted on his sicko fantasy thinking he'd never be suspected, IMO.

There are many facts pointing to an abduction by a local man, or multiple men. Three abduction attempts in the small town of St Joseph in just a few months, astonishing to say the least.

Also, remember this "should" have been a "school night," only a local would have known otherwise.

The Abbey at St John's may or may not be directly involved, but no doubt is at least indirectly involved. All those pedo priests in the area, word had to be out on the streets....and just imagine the aura of perverse activities that would have been so pervasive amongst other pedophiles in the area. The influence of the Abbey was in the air to be sure.

 

[ELOCsoul]

I didn't find any better pics of Fr. Tom, just the same pic a bit larger and this was from 2008.

(Side note: Interesting that Gillespie was in charge of computers and websites on the SJU campus - wonder if he was the one who wiped Josh Guimond's hard drive after Josh disappeared?)

Pilot indeed. The abused often become abusers. An abused child may become dependant on their abuser, possibly maintaining a "relationship" into adulthood.

Would be interesting to know who might have flown around with Fr Tom, especially knowing that person's connection to a well known POI......and remember, a POI isn't necessarily a suspect....could be an accessory after the fact. This could explain one's insistence on innocence.

 

[ELOCsoul]

I was able to find out a little more on the attempted abduction of boy "J" is the summer of 1989. The attempt was made in the township of St. Joseph, not necessarily in the town itself. Regardless, how is it that the police were not in better position to secure the crime scene immediately following Jacob's abduction??

And this is interesting...the perp in J's case asked the boy's age. Sound familiar?

 

[Pensfan]

Where did a monk (no income independent of the monastery) get the money to take flying lessons and practice for his pilot's license? They take a vow of poverty and share all income with their monastery. Why does a monk need a pilot's license?

Edit: He is not a monk, but a priest. Did all of Joy's aerial photos of Dan's farm come from Gillsespie plane?

 

[Pensfan]

I was able to find out a little more on the attempted abduction of boy "J" is the summer of 1989. The attempt was made in the township of St. Joseph, not necessarily in the town itself. Regardless, how is it that the police were not in better position to secure the crime scene immediately following Jacob's abduction??

And this is interesting...the perp in J's case asked the boy's age. Sound familiar?

It sounds familiar all over Earth, not just this area. Preferential pedophiles have a preference for prepubescent children (larger body, but smooth skin without adult body hair).

 

[Pensfan]

I was able to find out a little more on the attempted abduction of boy "J" is the summer of 1989. The attempt was made in the township of St. Joseph, not necessarily in the town itself. Regardless, how is it that the police were not in better position to secure the crime scene immediately following Jacob's abduction??

And this is interesting...the perp in J's case asked the boy's age. Sound familiar?

Can the info about the perp asking about age be found on an Internet site? tia


Different topic: It would seem logical that the monastery abbot would want to prevent his perv brethren from getting on the Internet which is filled with all types of perverse sex. It's outrageous that Gillespie was made a director of computer graphics and etc.. for the monastery. :smh: