NE NE - Jason Jolkowski, 19, Omaha, 13 Jun 2001 - #3

[Andreee]

I had the same thought about how easy it would be to give directions, but a few posts above said there was quite a bit of construction in the area. This and the fact that they were calling him in. I know with some of my processing delays it could have been faster to have them meet at the school than to take a few extra moments to consider the construction and where they're coming from, if that makes sense.

It has also been mentioned by his family that Jason had a slight learning issue even though he was very intelligent. That could've been a factor in 'giving directions' to his house to the coworker. Heck, I know for myself I find it difficult to give all the street names and directions to my own house in a clear manner. So much easier to just pick a mutually known meeting place, like a school nearby.

 

[retrometro]

It has also been mentioned by his family that Jason had a slight learning issue even though he was very intelligent. That could've been a factor in 'giving directions' to his house to the coworker. Heck, I know for myself I find it difficult to give all the street names and directions to my own house in a clear manner. So much easier to just pick a mutually known meeting place, like a school nearby.

I was always very good at giving directions to my house when I was a teenager, but people would get lost all the time because it was in a subdivision identical-looking houses and confusing street names (ie, Retro Blvd, Retro Street, etc.). Jason's neighborhood looked more distinct, but with the road construction plus similar street names (48th Avenue, 48th Street), it doesn't strike me as odd at all that JJ would choose to use a familiar landmark as a meeting place.

 

[Sonny Crockett]

I agree with those who believe that JJ's deciding to meet the co-worker at the H.S. (instead of having her drive to his house) was not at all significant. I.e., I don't believe this was mainly/partially because he wanted to "make a stop along the way", etc. It sounds like it was just easier & more practical for him to meet her at a place he was 100% sure she knew how to get to - instead of risking that she may get lost if she tried to drive to his house (which was unfamiliar to her). And, note that 2001 was in the days before GPS - or at least before GPS became as popular & widely-used as it is today.

I can relate to this somewhat because giving people directions to a residence can definitely be tricky at times....especially if you live in an area with a lot of side-streets, etc. I know that where I live now is not hard to get to, but in the days before GPS some people (when coming here for the first time) would typically get lost - even though I gave them good directions.

JJ was pretty street wise, though. One day there were some banger-wanna-be kids throwing rocks at his house. He could have went out and yelled at them, but he walked out and talked to them, and diffused the situation. It never happened again. The parted with this feeling of mutual respect.

Good to know that JJ had a good head on his shoulders & probably wouldn't have escalated a tense situation, but instead would probably try to diffuse this.

Even before I read this, I felt that the possibility of JJ getting assaulted/killed due to inadvertently running into some kind of gang activity/drug deal was very slim. Even if he had walked by something like this, I don't think that these people would really perceive him as much of a threat & probably wouldn't attack/assault him. Also - in the unlikely event something like this did happen - I suspect it would probably have involved more than 1 young person. And, I don't see people like this keeping their mouths shut for 21 years. Sure, it's possible - but I don't find it that plausible.

 

[studebkr]

If I do have the right place, what route do you think he would have taken, would have been easiest on a hot day?
Would he gone up N 48th to Bedford, or cut across Pinkney to N 48th Ave to Bedford?

I actually did a streetmaps video a while back on the route I would have taken. I guess I put it on YouTube as an unlisted link...

Personally, I would walk down Pinkney to the street that angles a little in a SW direction and cut across to Bedford then take Bedford up to the school. My son went to Benson, and told me he liked to mix it up and go different ways, but this was one of them.

My way is missing some sidewalks in in places, so he might take 48th Ave straight to Bedford, but that's adds another hill to the walk. It's a hilly neighborhood.

 

[Alleykins]

I actually did a streetmaps video a while back on the route I would have taken. I guess I put it on YouTube as an unlisted link...

Personally, I would walk down Pinkney to the street that angles a little in a SW direction and cut across to Bedford then take Bedford up to the school. My son went to Benson, and told me he liked to mix it up and go different ways, but this was one of them.

My way is missing some sidewalks in in places, so he might take 48th Ave straight to Bedford, but that's adds another hill to the walk. It's a hilly neighborhood.

Thank you for re-posting this video. I watched it the first time through but forgot some of the details, so I appreciate it.

On a hot June day, I would have taken the least hilly and most tree-shaded route myself.
Bedford looks atrocious to walk up. I can't tell how steep it is on Google maps, but it looks like a long, gradual incline.

 

[Andreee]

I actually did a streetmaps video a while back on the route I would have taken. I guess I put it on YouTube as an unlisted link...

Personally, I would walk down Pinkney to the street that angles a little in a SW direction and cut across to Bedford then take Bedford up to the school. My son went to Benson, and told me he liked to mix it up and go different ways, but this was one of them.

My way is missing some sidewalks in in places, so he might take 48th Ave straight to Bedford, but that's adds another hill to the walk. It's a hilly neighborhood.

Hi, interesting! I wonder (and I may've asked this before, if so sorry lol) but do you recall or is there any way to find out which areas had construction work going on at the time of JJ's disappearance? I seem to recall reading some work was going on near the park enroute? Thanks.

 

[studebkr]

Hi, interesting! I wonder (and I may've asked this before, if so sorry lol) but do you recall or is there any way to find out which areas had construction work going on at the time of JJ's disappearance? I seem to recall reading some work was going on near the park enroute? Thanks.

I think Mathew did some research and found there was none in the general area in 2001. My recollection was that there was, but I lived there a few years, then rented the place out a couple years too.

Omaha has a sewer project that has been going on for over 30 years, so there was and still is construction going on somewhere. The older neighborhoods have combined storm and septic sewers. Storms could cause the sewers to back up.

My thought wasn't so much that JJ fell into one, but that if someone did harm him, it's a place to stash the evidence. So even if it was not going on there, it was happening in nearby areas. We had a case when I was young where a gal went missing at a party, and though they thought they knew who took her, they couldn't find a body. It showed up in a man-hole many years later.

 

[MatthewTyler]

I think Mathew did some research and found there was none in the general area in 2001. My recollection was that there was, but I lived there a few years, then rented the place out a couple years too.

Omaha has a sewer project that has been going on for over 30 years, so there was and still is construction going on somewhere. The older neighborhoods have combined storm and septic sewers. Storms could cause the sewers to back up.

My thought wasn't so much that JJ fell into one, but that if someone did harm him, it's a place to stash the evidence. So even if it was not going on there, it was happening in nearby areas. We had a case when I was young where a gal went missing at a party, and though they thought they knew who took her, they couldn't find a body. It showed up in a man-hole many years later.

I was just going off something that Kelly had said about there not being construction at the time, but I can't actually say for sure. I trust her word because she probably remembers every vivid detail about that day. Not sure how the sewer systems work (there or anywhere really), but would it even be possible to be concealed there for 20+ years? Aren't sewers cleaned periodically? As for the storm drains on the sides of the roads, from what I've seen on Google maps they look REALLY narrow and tight. Even a chopped body would have trouble getting down there. Even for the case you mentioned, she was found after 9 years. 21 years is just such a long time to be down a manhole.

 

[Alleykins]

I was just going off something that Kelly had said about there not being construction at the time, but I can't actually say for sure. I trust her word because she probably remembers every vivid detail about that day. Not sure how the sewer systems work (there or anywhere really), but would it even be possible to be concealed there for 20+ years? Aren't sewers cleaned periodically? As for the storm drains on the sides of the roads, from what I've seen on Google maps they look REALLY narrow and tight. Even a chopped body would have trouble getting down there. Even for the case you mentioned, she was found after 9 years. 21 years is just such a long time to be down a manhole.

How frequently a utility worker, etc, accesses/works in a manhole depends on what it houses, what's going on down there, and if anyone needs to, as most won't go in one unless it's absolutely necessary. Manholes are dangerous.
Don't know about Omaha, but there are some really old manholes in New England that technicians will not, and can't, go in because they're lead-lined, gas filled or flooded, or all three. It's a health hazard. So it could possibly be decades, or never, for a manhole to be accessed, depending on what it's used for and if it's necessary. So, yeah, technically, someone could be in a manhole for 21 years, or even longer. Not saying this is what happened, but I wouldn't rule it out unless all manholes along Jason's known routes were investigated or have been accessed since.
I think we've had a similar discussion before, so I apologize if this is a repeat.

 

[Alleykins]

Here's a picture of a manhole on the corner of Pinkney and N 48th Ave, near Jason's house.
I think it's a standard sized one, which would be large enough for someone to access, but it's hard to tell from the picture.
It's labeled sewer.

 

[Alleykins]

Here's an image capture from Jul 2019 on N 48th Ave, between Pinkey and Bedford.
You can see this one has recently been worked on. I'm really surprised no one is "manning" it, even though it's surrounded by those safety sawhorse things. That's not usually something a union guy would do, but contractors would. Very unsafe, even with the barriers.

 

[Andreee]

I think Mathew did some research and found there was none in the general area in 2001. My recollection was that there was, but I lived there a few years, then rented the place out a couple years too.

Omaha has a sewer project that has been going on for over 30 years, so there was and still is construction going on somewhere. The older neighborhoods have combined storm and septic sewers. Storms could cause the sewers to back up.

My thought wasn't so much that JJ fell into one, but that if someone did harm him, it's a place to stash the evidence. So even if it was not going on there, it was happening in nearby areas. We had a case when I was young where a gal went missing at a party, and though they thought they knew who took her, they couldn't find a body. It showed up in a man-hole many years later.

Thanks for the reply! Always interesting to have information from someone who lived near Jason.

 

[Andreee]

Here's an image capture from Jul 2019 on N 48th Ave, between Pinkey and Bedford.
You can see this one has recently been worked on. I'm really surprised no one is "manning" it, even though it's surrounded by those safety sawhorse things. That's not usually something a union guy would do, but contractors would. Very unsafe, even with the barriers.
View attachment 354904

Interesting, thanks for this photo. It does look unsafe!

 

[Alleykins]

Interesting, thanks for this photo. It does look unsafe!

You're welcome.

 

[Sonny Crockett]

I actually did a streetmaps video a while back on the route I would have taken. I guess I put it on YouTube as an unlisted link...

I watched the whole video - this is extremely interesting/informative. Thanks very much for taking the time to put this together & to post this here.

Ever since I started following this case last month, I've been trying to imagine the route that JJ would have walked to get to the H.S. And, this definitely helps. Some comments/observations regarding the video:

-This appears to be a very typical, older suburban neighborhood. In the 20+ years since JJ vanished, I'm sure some of the houses were renovated; more road work/street work was probably done; it's probable that the trees overhanging the streets have grown more in the 20+ years; I suspect some of the other trees (overhanging the streets) may also have been trimmed back/cut down, etc.

-As has been discussed, it's unclear which route JJ took to go to the H.S. It seems like he had several choices.

-One of routes JJ may have taken was a somewhat deserted, somewhat narrow side-street/alley. At the time the video was taken, there was an abandoned couch off to the side. So, if JJ willingly got into a car - I can see it happening on this side-street/alley & no one seeing this occur.

-Even if JJ just walked down the regular street(s) to get to the H.S., I can absolutely see why/how he may not have been seen in his last minutes - whether he got into a car or went into a house (the two most likely explanations re: why he vanished). I.e., these houses aren't that close together; in some cases they have large yards in front, so the houses are not that close to the streets themselves; in some cases there are trees in the front(s) of the houses - which would obscure the view to the street(s); etc.

-The possibilities of JJ either accidentally falling down a hole - or being put down a manhole - are plausible, unfortunately.

 

[Alleykins]

I watched the whole video - this is extremely interesting/informative. Thanks very much for taking the time to put this together & to post this here.

Ever since I started following this case last month, I've been trying to imagine the route that JJ would have walked to get to the H.S. And, this definitely helps. Some comments/observations regarding the video:

-This appears to be a very typical, older suburban neighborhood. In the 20+ years since JJ vanished, I'm sure some of the houses were renovated; more road work/street work was probably done; it's probable that the trees overhanging the streets have grown more in the 20+ years; I suspect some of the other trees (overhanging the streets) may also have been trimmed back/cut down, etc.

-As has been discussed, it's unclear which route JJ took to go to the H.S. It seems like he had several choices.

-One of routes JJ may have taken was a somewhat deserted, somewhat narrow side-street/alley. At the time the video was taken, there was an abandoned couch off to the side. So, if JJ willingly got into a car - I can see it happening on this side-street/alley & no one seeing this occur.

-Even if JJ just walked down the regular street(s) to get to the H.S., I can absolutely see why/how he may not have been seen in his last minutes - whether he got into a car or went into a house (the two most likely explanations re: why he vanished). I.e., these houses aren't that close together; in some cases they have large yards in front, so the houses are not that close to the streets themselves; in some cases there are trees in the front(s) of the houses - which would obscure the view to the street(s); etc.

-The possibilities of JJ either accidentally falling down a hole - or being put down a manhole - are plausible, unfortunately.

Yes, I noticed the couch in the street. That was Pinkney. That road is in extreme disrepair, and had a lot of overgrowth and woody patches overflowing into the street. There was also a manhole completely on its side when that street view was taken. @studebkr - do you remember Pinkney being in such a crumbling state? Has it always been like that, that you recall? I don't imagine Jason would have taken Pinkney all the way up until N 52nd and then cut across because it's a bit of an uphill climb, and it would have taken longer, but it appears it would have been the least congested way.
Pinkney>N 48th Ave>Bedford would probably been the way I would have gone. It seems the flattest until you get to Bedford. Man, no matter which way he took, that ascent to the high school looked brutal.

 

[Andreee]

Here's a picture of a manhole on the corner of Pinkney and N 48th Ave, near Jason's house.
I think it's a standard sized one, which would be large enough for someone to access, but it's hard to tell from the picture.
It's labeled sewe

I watched the whole video - this is extremely interesting/informative. Thanks very much for taking the time to put this together & to post this here.

Ever since I started following this case last month, I've been trying to imagine the route that JJ would have walked to get to the H.S. And, this definitely helps. Some comments/observations regarding the video:

-This appears to be a very typical, older suburban neighborhood. In the 20+ years since JJ vanished, I'm sure some of the houses were renovated; more road work/street work was probably done; it's probable that the trees overhanging the streets have grown more in the 20+ years; I suspect some of the other trees (overhanging the streets) may also have been trimmed back/cut down, etc.

-As has been discussed, it's unclear which route JJ took to go to the H.S. It seems like he had several choices.

-One of routes JJ may have taken was a somewhat deserted, somewhat narrow side-street/alley. At the time the video was taken, there was an abandoned couch off to the side. So, if JJ willingly got into a car - I can see it happening on this side-street/alley & no one seeing this occur.

-Even if JJ just walked down the regular street(s) to get to the H.S., I can absolutely see why/how he may not have been seen in his last minutes - whether he got into a car or went into a house (the two most likely explanations re: why he vanished). I.e., these houses aren't that close together; in some cases they have large yards in front, so the houses are not that close to the streets themselves; in some cases there are trees in the front(s) of the houses - which would obscure the view to the street(s); etc.

-The possibilities of JJ either accidentally falling down a hole - or being put down a manhole - are plausible, unfortunately.

If I recall correctly, back when JJ's mom was on this thread that she or someone 'in the know' mentioned which route he usually took to the school when he attended there. I forget, but perhaps someone else remembers. I look forward to watching the video, thanks to studebkr former neighbour of JJ's for making it! Like others who have followed this case for a long time, I think we all feel more frustrated about it as time marches on re this case. Can't imagine how his family feels.

 

[dotr]

The Bizarre Disappearance of Jason Jolkowski

**Information is obtained from the Where are they? Podcast and other online sources as cited**

wherearetheypodcast.medium.com

Jun 13, 2021

 

[Alleykins]

@dotr- Hi, dot, what map is that for?

 

[dotr]

@dotr- Hi, dot, what map is that for?

Assumed it was the route JJ took to school.