MN - Jacob Wetterling, 11, 22 Oct 1989 ***MEDIA THREAD***NO DISCUSSION***

[bessie]

Kidnapped boy gone one week

The Prescott Courier
By Laura Baenen
October 29, 1989

"I've been living basically moment to moment since Sunday night," said Jacob's father, Jerry.

Gov. Rudy Perpich, who visited the family Thursday, activated 100 Minnesota Army National Guardsmen to expand the search

Mounted deputies scour Minn. fields for abducted child

Masked man kidnapped boy, 11
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
October 27, 1989

Sunday night was the first time Jacob had been allowed to ride his bicycle after dark to go to a conveninece store, when he planned to rent a videotape, said his father, Jerry Wetterling. Jacob was accompanied by his brother, Trevor, 10, and by an 11-year-old friend. On the way back to the Wetterling house outside this central Minnesota town of 2,200, they were accosted by a man who had what appeared to be a pantyhose pulled over his head to distort his facial features. The two boys who escaped told police the man pulled a gun and asked them their ages, then ordered them to run away and threatened to shoot them. Not until they were a distance down the road did they realize Jacob wasn't with them.

FBI spokesman, Byron Giglerd said 20 agents had been assigned to the case.

Searchers ask callers for help in abduction

Gadsden Times
October 26, 1989
The Fox network's "A Current Affair" aired a segment on the abduction Thursday night, and Kostreba said telephones at search headquarters began ringing almost continuously as soon as the phone number was shown.

A group of anonymous Twin Cities business leaders Thursday night offered a $100,000 cash reward for Jacob's return unharmed within the next 72 hours.

Boy kidnapped

The Milwaukee Journal
October 27, 1989
More than 40 deputies set out on horseback Thursday to search dry fields near the spot where Jacob Wetterling was abducted by a masked man dressed in black.

Timberwolves Help

Reading Eagle
November 7, 1989
The Timberwolves said Monday they would donate all net proceeds from ticket sold from this point on for Wednesday's game to help the search for Jacob Wetterling.

Students send letters asking help in finding abducted boy

Reading Eagle
November 9, 1989
"If somebody would see it (the letter), they might see Jacob," said 11-year-old David Brinkman. "The might be able to alert somebody," added Cary Gottwald, 13.

A Town Prays for a Missing Son

People Magazine
November 20, 1989
By William Plummer, Margaret Nelson
It was after 9 P.M. when Jacob, his brother, Trevor, 10, and a friend, Aaron Larson, 11, were coming home from a Tom Thumb convenience store, where they'd rented the video of The Naked Gun. Patty Wetterling, 40, and her husband, Jerry, 41, were at a party when the boys called to ask if they could make the one-mile trip to the store, and Patty wasn't going to let them do it. "But then they called back," Patty remembers, "and Jerry said they could if they wore reflective clothing, carried a flashlight and all stayed together. We thought we were protecting them from everything."

The Wetterlings never imagined that a man in a mask would be waiting for the boys in the dark of their dead-end street and order them off their bikes at gunpoint. Visiting the scene for the first time since the abduction, Patty breaks down as Jerry describes what happened. "He told them to lie face down in the gutter," says Jerry. "Then he asked them their ages. He told Trevor to run into the field or he'd shoot. Then he had Aaron turn over, and he looked at his face and told him to run. He grabbed hold of Jacob." The two boys ran the remaining half mile to the Wetterlings' house, where Rochelle Jerzak, a neighbor who was baby-sitting Jacob's sister Carmen, 8 (Jacob's older sister Amy, 13, was visiting a friend), called home. Rochelle's father, Merle, dialed 911 and then called the Wetterlings—thereby setting in motion the extraordinary effort to get Jacob back.

Two weeks ago the assorted FBI agents and local police who have frequented the Wetterling house got together and sent Patty flowers for her 40th birthday. "They keep me going," says Patty. "They say they're going to bring Jacob home. I hold onto that. I have to believe them." (much more at the link)

 

[bessie]

New lead reported in Wetterling case

Article by: PAT DOYLE; STAFF WRITER, Star Tribune
Updated: December 14, 1989 - 10:00 PM
Police investigating the kidnapping of Jacob Wetterling said Thursday that they now have a prime suspect, a burly man who abducted and sexually assaulted another boy before releasing him...

The development came this week after three FBI interviews with a 12-year-old boy in Cold Spring, Minn., who told of being sexually assaulted last January. He described his assailant as a white man, 40 to 50 years old and wearing military-style fatigues and a baseball cap. Authorities had interviewed the boy previously but weren't certain until recently that his description was precise or that the abduction bore a strong similarity to the Wetterling kidnapping. "It's the guy we believe took Jacob," FBI agent Byron Gigler said yesterday...

"The person who abducted Jacob knows the community," Jamar said. Assuming that the Cold Spring abductor and Jacob's kidnapper are the same person, "He's there in January and he's there in October. Maybe he works in the area, has relatives there or travels through. Or lives there." Authorities cited a number of similarities between the abduction in Cold Spring and the kidnapping of Jacob. Moreover, the drawing of the prime suspect resembles an earlier sketch of a man wanted for questioning for following or otherwise bothering youngsters in the area. "They could be the same person," Jamar said...

"This guy was very aggressive, very commanding, almost like a military man," Gigler said. (Much more at the link)

Family focuses on hope - Abducted son nears birthday

Reading Eagle
Associated Press
February 11, 1990
"Everyday you're suspended," Mrs. Wetterling says. "There's no meaning to days and nights and weeks. Some people call and say, 'It's been seven weeks, it's been eight weeks.' After five minutes, it was too long..."

Investigators in the Wetterling case have logged about 20,000 calls, tips and potential suspects since the Oct. 22 abduction. They've released sketches of a 40-to50-year-old man who last year kidnapped, sexually assaulted, then released a boy 10 miles away and another of a man with a menacing stare spotted in the store the same day Jacob went there. Investigators believe there's a good possibility they're the same man and consider him one of the stronger suspects. (more at the link)

Investigators check car trunk of man quizzed on missing youth

(say holes found in metal big enough for breathing)
The Milwaukee Journal
May 2, 1990
Schardt said the man said he made the holes to accomodate some wiring. Investigators said they found photographs of children taped to the car's windows and dashboard and a cup of candy.

Waukesha parolee questioned in Shawano

(But police see little hope of finding clues to the abduction of 11-year-old)
The Milwaukee Journal
By Mark Lisheron
May 1, 1990
Shawano County Sheriff Walter Schardt admitted Tuesday that the search held only the faintest hope of yielding clues to the gunpoint abduction of Jacob Wetterling on Oct. 22, 1989...

The man consented to the search, although young children in Marion, 35 miles northwest of Appleton and Bowler and about 15 miles north of Marion, were unable to identify him as one of the strangers they told police tried to lure them into cars near their schools, Schardt said. "Other than the probation violation, we have nothing to hold the guy on," Schardt said.

Year later, parents of abducted boy hold out hope

Times Daily
Oct 21, 1990
To mark the abduction's anniversary, the volunteers who organized the Jacob Wetterling Foundation planned simultaneous candlelight prayers services tonight here and in a Minneapolis suburb.

"I think the thing that's hard for me right now is that Jacob has become symbolic of all missing children and we have become this goofy false celebrity," Mrs. Wetterling said. "The bottom line is he is my son," she said, pounding her kitchen table with her fist as she blinked back tears. "And it hurts. He's not a symbol. He's Jacob. He's my son."

Volunteers still search for boy missing a year

Reading Eagle
Associated Press
October 21, 1990
Stearns County Sheriff Charlie Grafft said the background of the newest suspect, a man seen in St. Joseph about three weeks ago, is being checked...

Grafft would give few details of the suspect other than that he had a car with out-of-state plates and had been seen in this central Minnesota community of 2,200.

Vigil marks abduction anniversary

More than 700 attend vigil for missing boy

Most abductions tied to family members

 

[bessie]

Abduction informant's credibility questioned

The Telegraph-Herald
July 22, 1991
Mrs. Gosch said Stephens told her the same men may also be involved in other abductions, including Martin's and the October 1989 kidnapping of Jacob Wetterling in St. Joseph, Minn.

Man says charge made before Porter was priest

By Linda Matchan and Stephen Kurkjian, Globe Staff, 10/23/1992
Porter had been interviewed in December 1989 in connection with the kidnapping of 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling, who was abducted Oct. 22, 1989 by an armed man in St. Joseph's, Minn.

"We interviewed hundreds of people in that case based on tips that we got about anyone who had been suspected of being involved in any sexual crimes with children," Grant Beise, an FBI agent in Minneapolis, said.

Until Susan Smith's confession, Patty Wetterling had much in common with the woman

The Vindicator
By Katherine Lanpher, Knight Ridder
November 8, 1994
The two women were to have met Friday morning featured guests on the "Phil Donohue" show. Patty Wetterling, children's advocate and the mother of an abducted son, was preparing to comfort Susan Smith, the mother of two little boys allegedly carjacked from her side in Union, S.C...

New question: Now, if Wetterling shared anything with Smith, it would be a question: "How could you?"

Clinton signs sex offender notification

Lawrence Journal-World
May 17, 1996
Standing near Clinton as he signed the bill was were Megan's parents, Richard and Maureen Kanka, and their daughter, Jessica, 13, and son, Jeremy, 10. Also present were Mac Klaas, whose 12-year-old daughter, Polly, was kidnapped from her bedroom in Petaluma, Calif., and murdered in 1989; and Patty Wetterling, whose son, Jacob, was kidnapped from his home in St. Joseph, Minn., in 1989 and has never been found.

When grief turns into action - Victim's families now legal force

Herald-Journal
By Calvin Woodward, AP
December 27, 1996
Megan's Law named for the July 1994 murder victim, requires communities to be notified when paroled sexual criminals move into the neighborhood.

The federal law builds on the Jacob Wetterling Act, the sexual criminals' registry legislation named for the 11-year-old boy abducted at gunpoint in St. Joseph, Minn., in 1989 and never found.

Son Abducted 9 Years Ago, Mother Hangs On to Hope

The New York Times
By DIRK JOHNSON -- Published: December 31, 1998

''One morning, I lay in bed and couldn't go on anymore,'' Ms. Wetterling said. ''It was too hard. I pulled the covers up over my head and decided I was never going to get out of that bed again.'' But then she envisioned Jacob. He was huddled in a corner, saying he was going to give up. And she found herself speaking out loud: Hold on, Jacob. We're going to find you. ''So I pulled myself out of bed and took a shower, and went out to find him,'' she said. ''And that's what I do every day.''

Ms. Wetterling started a foundation, Jacob's Hope, which focuses on the plight of missing and exploited children, a forum that gives her a chance to talk with law enforcement officers across the nation and keep her son's case from being forgotten. Some leads still come, but none have panned out. There are people who call, from all over the country, and say they think they have seen Jacob, sometimes sending pictures. There are con artists who call and ask about a reward. There are sadistic pranksters who call to try to twist their minds.

States get deadline for registration of sex offenders

Clinton endorses national registry

 

[bessie]

KARE 11 Investigates: News in the Wetterling Case

4:28 PM, Jul 30, 2004
Another boy, about the same age, size and 'look' of Jacob was abducted from the streets near St. Joseph just ten months before Jacob disappeared.

Just this week police acknowledged another not so-public aspect of the Jacob Wetterling investigation — Jared's abduction from the streets of Cold Spring, Minnesota — just ten miles from where Jacob was taken.

Police were so struck by the similarities between the two cases that they had Jared put together a sketch of his abductor, and then released it as an image of the suspect in the Wetterling kidnapping.

KARE 11 Investigates: Coincidence in Wetterling Case

Cindy Chapman
4:30 PM, Jul 30, 2004
A former Cold Spring man, who was abducted and assaulted just ten months before Jacob Wetterling disappeared, is coming forward to tell his story publicly for the first time in hopes it will trigger new leads in the Wetterling case.

The man told his story to KARE-TV reporter Rick Kupchella. The station is identifying the man only as "Jared" out of concern for his family

Man admits to sexually assaulting boys

WAOW
by Ashley Gatz
Posted: Mar 27, 2009 4:51 PM CDT
Police also say he was infatuated with child murders. They found toy cars with names of dead children written on them at Acker's home. There's no indication that he was involved in them.

They also found photos of children who had been abducted and killed, including Jason Wetterling of Minnesota, who disappeared in 1989.

Jacob Wetterling: Gone 20 years but with him every day

By Richard Meryhew, Star Tribune
October 21, 2009
Even now, 20 years later, Aaron Larson plays it back daily, wondering what he might have done, said or seen to make things turn out differently. "It's difficult to think about all the things that might have been," Larson said softly. "It's something I think about every single day."

"The first thing I remember was the flash of the gun, and a guy saying, 'Stop, I have a gun,'" Larson recalled. "I caught my breath. I thought it was a high school kid pulling a joke on us. ... Then it hits you: this is happening, it's no joke." The man ordered them to lie face-down in the roadside ditch. Larson remembers his heart "going 1,000 beats a minute," but having no clue what was happening. "You didn't hear about people being kidnapped or abducted. It didn't cross my mind." The man asked Trevor to look at him, then asked his age. He did the same with Aaron, then Jacob. "Then he told Trevor to run as fast as he can to the woods...

After running 100 yards, Larson looked back -- and saw nothing but darkness. Frantic, the boys ran to the Wetterling house. The babysitter called her father, who called 911. Within minutes, the cul-de-sac lit up with squad cars. Petrified, Larson looked out a living room window and kept telling himself he would see Jacob again. "Sooner or later, he's going to come and he's going to get out of the car and this will all be over." Twenty years later, there's a part of him still looking out the window, waiting for his friend.
(Much more to read at the link)

'Jacob's Hope' still alive in their hearts

St. Cloud Times
Written by David Unze -- October 17, 2009

ST. JOSEPH — There’s only one road connecting the rest of the world to the quiet cul-de-sac Jerry and Patty Wetterling call home.

In an area that has seen surrounding land gobbled up by development, 91st Avenue Southeast cuts through farm fields as it approaches the Wetterling residence. It still looks a lot like it did 20 years ago, the night 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling was abducted at the spot where a neighbor’s driveway meets that road. And every time the Wetterlings leave their home, whether for days at a time or to get a gallon of milk, they pass the spot where the second-oldest of their four children disappeared.

“We call it The Site,” Jerry said. “Sometimes we say we’re going to take a walk to The Site. It’s kind of an eerie feeling.”

“I say a prayer every time I go past it,” Patty said. (Excellent interview; continued at the link)

Without a Trace

Minnesota Monthly
By Beth Hawkins -- October 2009

Twenty years ago, 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling vanished. His fate remains unknown, his captor’s identity a mystery. But much has changed in the way crimes against children are investigated. Here, the story as told by those who lived it.

snipped
Jacob’s abduction triggered a sea change in our culture and our laws. Children are now routinely taught to be on guard against strangers who might harm them. Once nearly impossible to track, sex offenders now are required to register with law enforcement, and police are more sensitive to victims’ experiences. Countless articles have been written about the crime and the search for Jacob. But this month, on the 20th anniversary of the his disappearance, we revisit the event and its repercussions in a way that has never been done before—through the voices of those involved along the way.

The Boy
Jacob was the second of Patty and Jerry Wetterling’s four children. The oldest, Amy, was 14 in 1989. Trevor was 10, and Carmen was 8. Patty was a stay-at-home mom and Jerry a chiropractor. The family lived on a quiet cul-de-sac.

Patty Wetterling: Jacob was 11—that wonderful age. He was young and sweet and still liked to be hugged. His voice hadn’t changed. He had a girlfriend. He was almost my height. He was 5-feet tall. I’m 5-foot-1. That was a big milestone: “You’re as tall as Mom.”

He was a good athlete. He played soccer, basketball, and football. Both our boys played football together with the neighbors. They were so competitive. Frequently, they’d come in crying. I’d say, “Come on, you guys! Why can’t everybody win?”

Jerry Wetterling: For Father’s Day, the kids made a video of themselves putting on a skit. Jacob was portraying me. He was sitting in a chair reading the paper and Amy came up to him and said, “Dad, I’m so sorry I broke one of the lamps.” And he said, “Oh, that’s okay, we can get that fixed or get another one.”

And Trevor came and said he was throwing a baseball and broke a window. And he said, “No problem, we needed to get that window fixed anyhow.” And then Carmen said, “Dad, we forgot to tape the game.” Jacob said, “What?! You forgot to tape the game?!”
(MUST READ ARTICLE)

Jacob Wetterling Rescource Center

The Charley Project -- Jacob Erwin Wetterling

The Abduction Scene

Jacob Wetterling Investigation Timeline
July 01, 2010 12:15 am
By The St. Cloud (Minn.) Times

 

[bessie]

Investigators at Jacob Wetterling Abduction Site

Published June 30, 2010, 04:34 PM
By: Amy Forliti, Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Investigators searched a central Minnesota property Wednesday where an 11-year-old boy was abducted at gunpoint nearly 21 years ago and never heard from again.

Authorities said little about the search in St. Joseph. But aerial photos taken by the St. Cloud Times showed as many as 17 vehicles, all-terrain vehicles and trailers on the property.
- See more at: http://www.wdaz.com/event/article/id/3003/#sthash.cb6qrJMY.dpuf

Law enforcement converge on site near Wetterling abduction in St. Joseph

By Tad Vezner, Rubén Rosario, Frederick Melo and Mara H. Gottfried
Pioneer Press - 06/30/2010 12:01:00 AM CDT

ST. JOSEPH, Minn. — A man who lives at the farm where law enforcement with earth-moving equipment converged Wednesday gave a DNA sample to investigators several years ago as part of the Jacob Wetterling abduction case, according to the man's brother.

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Farm Search Photo Gallery Day 1

Farm Search Photo Gallery Day 2


Nancy Grace Transcripts -- November 25, 2005

Nancy Grace Transcripts -- February 28, 2011

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Julie Nelson interviews Wetterling 'person of interest'

KARE 11 -- 2:50 PM, Oct 6, 2010
COLD SPRING, Minn. -- For 21 years Dan Rassier has lived under a cloud of suspicion. He has been called, by police, a person of interest in the Jacob Wetterling case.

Julie Nelson sat down with the 54-year-old, who lives with his parents on the family farm in St. Joseph. Rassier described himself as an avid runner and hard worker.

"I keep myself very busy and on task, probably too much of the time," said Rassier...

"Why do you think they've kept you as a person of interest for so long in the Jacob Wetterling case?" asks Nelson.

"I'm single, living at home with my parents, some people see that as a mark of failure," said Rassier. "I don't have a good alibi," he added.

Twenty-one years later and police are still checking out Dan Rassier. He says he willingly submitted a DNA sample, took a lie detector test, and even underwent hypnosis. He does not know the results of those tests, but knows his family thinks he's been too forthcoming.
(ARTICLE AND VIDEO AT THE LINK)

Part Two: Julie Nelson's conversation with Dan Rassier

KARE 11 -- 2:50 PM, Oct 6, 2010
It was six years ago when the scrutiny intensified for Rassier. Investigators ruled out the use of a car in Jacob's abduction. The attention turned to Rassier.

"I was home alone. I don't have an alibi," said Rassier.

Rassier says he has been interrogated more time than he can count. "They even said to me, this was six years ago, "Would you be willing to just admit you did it and end this whole thing so we can go on and get this solved?" "They've said that to me," said Rassier.

"What was your reaction?" asked Jule Nelson

"I laughed. I laughed at them. They didn't like that but for me I have to have a sense of humor about something so serious or I wouldn't be here. I'd have gone crazy long ago," answered Rassier.
(ARTICLE AND VIDEO AT THE LINK)

New Leads in the Jacob Wetterling Abduction Case

Submitted by Cory Kampschroer, Digital Media Manager -- Tuesday, March 1st, 2011, 10:28pm

The Stearns County Sheriff says they have received 11 new leads in the disappearance of Jacob Wetterling, after the case was featured on a national news show Monday night. The 21-year old case was featured on CNN's Nancy Grace show as part of "50 People in 50 Days."

The Jacob Wetterling Abduction

Saint Autumn
July 1, 2012
The man who took Jacob may have been responsible for an assault on a child just ten months prior in the nearby town of Cold Spring, Minnesota.

(Good investigative blog with many photos)

Dan Rassier, Person Of Interest In Jacob Wetterling Abduction, Says Cops Are Violating His Rights

By AMY FORLITI 08/02/12 11:54 PM ET
MINNEAPOLIS -- A man who has been publicly identified as a person of interest in a Minnesota boy's 1989 abduction told The Associated Press on Thursday that he sent a letter to 14 state officials and agencies, complaining about how he has been treated by law enforcement.

In the letter obtained by the AP, Dan Rassier wrote that law officers violated his civil rights and his family's rights and "abused the privileges of their power" in relation to the Jacob Wetterling case. Rassier also criticized the way the investigation has been handled over the years.

http://archive.sctimes.com/assets/pdf/DR1446941018.PDF

 

[bessie]

24 Years After His Disappearance, Jacob’s Mom Still Hopes

October 22, 2013 8:00 PM

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Tuesday marks 24 years since Jacob Wetterling was abducted at gunpoint near his St. Joseph, Minn., home.

And his mother, Patty, said she’s still hopeful her son will be found, as the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children released a photo of what 35-year-old Jacob could look like.

Jacob Wetterling at 11, in 1989

Sketches of the kidnapper

Investigators: Feeney fascinated with Wetterling case

Posted: Feb 25, 2013 9:48 PM CST Updated: Feb 26, 2013 7:02 AM CST
by Trish Van Pilsum
One man who the FOX 9 Investigators will identify only as Tim went on to become a camp counselor himself, and he said he remembers Feeney doing something odd after Wetterling's disappearance...

Tim told the FOX 9 Investigators that Feeney wanted to show them where Wetterling was abducted, a location many in the area were familiar with. "Drove around for a while and he stopped the car and pointed up to the right side of the car," Tim remembered. "Basically, to a ditch -- five, 10 feet. He basically said that is where he was abducted."

Twenty years later, Feeney would be charged with molesting two brothers who were clients of Feeney's talent agency.

The Stearns County sheriff told FOX 9 News his investigators took another look at Feeney after he was charged in 2012 in both Minnesota and Massachusetts, where he is accused of molesting the son of a relative, just to make sure they hadn't missed anything; however, they believe they can rule him out as a suspect.

Read more: Investigators: Feeney fascinated with Wetterling case - KMSP-TV http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/story/21348273/investigators-feeney-and-wetterling#ixzz2kVdKjqTv

Behind the Pine Curtain

 

[bessie]

Checotah Police Department -- Jacob Wetterling Story

snipped
Jacob’s case has resulted in over 50,000 leads and has been studied by staff and trainees at the FBI academy in Quantico, Virginia. The case is highly unusual in a number of ways. Rarely are children abducted, especially by non-family members or while playing in groups. There are only 115 cases of long-term, non-family abduction called stereotypical kidnappings each year.

To date, law enforcement and Jacob’s family still do not know what happened to Jacob or his abductor or where they are now.
(Read more at the link)

Rubén Rosario: Jacob Wetterling, still missing, remains a light in loved ones' hearts

By Rubén Rosario - rrosario@pioneerpress.com
10/22/2013 12:01:00 AM CDT | Updated: 7 months ago

TURN ON A LIGHT|

Another person who never loses hope is Stearns County Sheriff John Sanner. He still has a detective actively assigned to the Jacob Wetterling case.

"The case remains open because a family and a community await answers they deserve," he said in an email Tuesday. "If we label the case 'cold' and file it away, the tendency is to forget about it. That cannot happen.

"Keeping the case assigned to a detective automatically gives the investigation both a sense of ownership and responsibility. In other words, life," he added. "I have never promised to solve the case; I have, however, promised to never stop trying to solve the case. That fire burns as passionately

 

[shergal]

After 20 years, Minnesota still wonders, Where's Jacob?

"Why Jacob? I don't know why, I don't know why," Garber says. "We don't have evidence, but logic tells you that this person didn't drop out of the sky at this intersection and kidnap Jacob. I mean this person had a reason for being there. Look at this area. The area is not an area where you would routinely drive or walk through. ... This criminal didn't just happen to see the kids." (Much more at link)

 

[bessie]

Wetterling investigators take fresh look at similar cases

Trisha Volpe, KARE 11:23 p.m. EDT May 14, 2014

Jacob Wetterling, then just 11-years-old, was abducted on Oct. 22, 1989, in St. Joseph. The case remains open. Earlier that year a 12-year-old Cold Spring boy named Jared was also abducted and assaulted not far from where Jacob was taken.

Jacob Wetterling abduction site focus of search
Video report May 14, 2014

New Developments Revealed In Jacob Wetterling Abduction Case

May 14, 2014 10:00 PM

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — There is a new development in one of Minnesota’s most infamous unsolved crimes: the abduction of Jacob Wetterling.

A masked stranger grabbed the 11-year-old as he biked home from a store in St. Joseph nearly 25 years ago. Now, WCCO-TV has learned that a cluster of at least six unsolved sexual assaults on boys were never looked at as a possible lead in Wetterling’s case.

[...]

This new development in Minnesota’s most notorious kidnapping case begins in the most unlikely of places.

WEB EXTRA: Read Joy Baker’s Blog

“The police chief is asking for the public’s help in finding this guy who has been assaulting 12-16 year old boys,” Baker said of one article. “What went through my mind is that they have to be connected. How many psychopathic pedophiles can exist in a 20-mile radius?”

WCCO-TV asked Patty Wetterling if she had ever heard of the Paynesville cases and showed her two of the original police reports from the Paynesville attacks.

“We did not know about these cases until Joy Baker put it on her blog, and it was like, ‘Wow,’” Patty Wetterling said.

New London Blogger Suggests Link Between Wetterling Abduction, Paynesville Incidents

By Jim Maurice May 14, 2014 10:30 AM

ST. JOSEPH – A New London woman has raised questions about attacks on children in Paynesville in the mid-1980s and a possible connection to the abduction of Jacob Wetterling. Joy Baker writes a blog called Joy The Curious in which she explores on-line mysteries and other topics.

Baker says, “there’s actually one case of a child abduction in Cold Spring, and that happened nine months prior. But, before that even, 1986 and 1987 there were these incidents of attacks on young teenage boys between the ages of 12 and 16. There were five cases that were reported in the newspaper and we’ve since found at least two more and possibly four more.”

Abduction Victim Speaks Out On Wetterling Case

May 15, 2014 6:45 PM

“I was told to run don’t look back or he would shoot,” Jared said.

His description of the kidnapper’s threat is almost identical to the one described by Jacob Wetterling’s friend, Aaron.

“He grabbed Jacob and told me to run as fast as he could or he would shoot,” Trevor Wetterling said.

For Jared, the weeks after the Wetterling abduction were filled with grueling interviews with law enforcement.

“They brought me to a point where I broke down, just mentally broke down. They wanted the answer and I didn’t have the answer,” Jared said. “My parents made that decision we should move.”

[...]

The Stearns County Sheriff’s Office is now actively investigating all of the Paynesville cases to see if they are connected to Jacob Wetterling’s disappearance.

If you have any information about the Paynesville attacks or the Wetterling case, please call the Stearns County Sheriff at (320) 251-4240. You can also call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST.

 

[Dum-Dum Sucker]

http://greaterminnesota.kstp.com/ne...ve-interview-jacob-wetterling-person-interest

14 minutes of excerpts

 

[Dum-Dum Sucker]

http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2013/...est-goes-through-day-of-wetterling-abduction/

For 1st Time, ‘Person Of Interest’ Goes Through Day Of Wetterling Abduction


WCCO's Esme Murphy interviews DR

 

[shergal]

This older link contains several article son Jacob. The 4th article down is an open letter from Patty W. to the kidnapper, and the 6th article down is the story of Jacob's kidnapping as it was printed in the Reader's Digest in 1999. The article has a lot of detail.
http://missing87975.yuku.com/topic/2457

 

[shergal]

New source for videos of DR interviews and the search for Jacob:

Here is the full 13 minute interview from KSTP with DR:
http://www.clipsyndicate.com/video/...ive_interview_w_wetterling_person_of_interest

This site also has 40 videos related to Jacob's case:
http://www.clipsyndicate.com/search/simple/wetterling

KARE11 interview with DR:
http://www.kare11.com/video/625387048001/0/Julie-Nelson-interviews-Dan-Rassier-Part-I

A video on the Wetterlings and the search:
http://www.kare11.com/video/47393243001/1/20-years-later---Hope-remains-for-Jacobs-return

Items of interest found in search:
http://www.clipsyndicate.com/video/play/1595622/sheriff_items_of_interest_found_in_wetterling_case

 

[celticthyme]

News conference announcing a suspect in Jacob's case coming at 2PM, channel 9 Twin Cities. Suspect Daniel James Heinrich formerly from Paynesville, now from Annandale,MN, Arrested last night.Federal investigation.

 

[teknoslag]

Looks like they found Jared's abductor: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2015/10/29/jacob-wetterling-1989-kidnapping/74819588

DNA evidence links him to Jared's abduction. Hopefully, if he is guilty, they find something that could link him to Jacob as well, or he gives some kind of confession.

 

[bessie]

Daniel Heinrich Criminal Complaint - 28 page pdf

http://www.startribune.com/criminal-complaint-against-danny-james-heinrich/338471312/

Complaint/Affidavit/SearchWarrant - 58 page pdf

http://wac.450f.edgecastcdn.net/80450F/wjon.com/files/2015/10/DanielHeinrichIndictment-Optimized.pdf

Jacob Wetterling Abduction Investigation Photo Gallery at WCCO

 

[bessie]

For Wetterlings, It’s Been A Long Road To Answers
October 29, 2015 11:21 PM By John Lauritsen

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Since his abduction, Jacob’s family has been through a roller coaster of memories, anniversaries, and false hope.
Through their grief, the Wetterlings have worked to help other families of missing and exploited children.

[...]
“There’s no explanation. I don’t feel anger. I just want him home,” Jacob’s mother Patty Wetterling said the day after he was abducted.

That day his father Jerry urged Jacob to stay strong.

“I’m very optimistic,” he said. :My son is very intelligent, and if he can pull through he’ll do so.”

(cont. at the link)

 

[bessie]

UPDATE: 26 years later, ‘person of interest’ named in Jacob Wetterling disappearance
By Forum News Service on Oct 29, 2015 at 1:45 p.m.

Daniel Heinrich ------- Abductor Sketch ------- Daniel Heinrich 1990 link

MINNEAPOLIS -- Twenty-six years after the disappearance of 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling brought national media attention to central Minnesota, a person of interest in the case has been named.
Recommended for you

Authorities say Daniel James Heinrich, 52, of Annandale, was identified by authorities after being the subject of a child investigation. The U.S. Attorney’s office said Thursday a search warrant had been executed at Heinrich’s home seeking evidence in a Jan. 13, 1989 kidnapping near Cold Spring and Wetterling’s disappearance on Oct. 22, 1989, near St. Joseph.

---

MISSING CHILDREN: Stearns County abduction cases have been linked before
By Stephanie Dickrell, St. Cloud Times on Oct 29, 2015 at 10:03 p.m.

[...]
On Thursday, officials announced that DNA evidence connected Daniel Heinrich to that Cold Spring case. On the basis of that evidence, they were able to obtain a warrant where evidence of child was discovered.

Heinrich is considered a person of interest in the Wetterling case, but officials emphasized that Heinrich has not been charged in that case and he has denied any involvement.

However, anyone with information about Heinrich's activities in the late 1980s and early 1990s is asked to contact authorities.

Whether a link existed between those two cases has been investigated since Wetterling was taken in October 1989, Sherrif Sanner said.

[...]
The boy [Cold Springs victim] described his attacker as a man wearing military fatigues and black boots, possibly military boots. The abductor had husky shoulders and a low-pitched, raspy voice.

[...]
The boys in the Wetterling case described the kidnapper as wearing dark clothing and black boots. The man also was described as having a raspy voice.

(much more at the link)

 

[bessie]

Searching for Jacob: A timeline of an 11-year-old boy's disappearance
By St. Cloud Times on Oct 29, 2015 at 9:52 p.m.

It's been 26 years since Jacob Wetterling disappeared. Countless hours of investigation have led federal agents to a person of interest. The search to find Jacob continues, and the St. Cloud Times presents the timeline that spans more than a quarter of a century.

Oct. 22, 1989: Eleven-year-old Jacob Erwin Wetterling is abducted by a masked gunman about 9:15 p.m. along 91st Avenue, southeast of St. Joseph. Firefighters and 35 officers from the Stearns County Sheriff’s Office and other law enforcement agencies search the area. Two local FBI agents and five from Minneapolis are assigned to the case. A state helicopter with a searchlight searches the nearby woods and fields. A command post is set up at Del-Win Ballroom in St. Joseph. Searches are called off at 3 a.m. until daybreak.

Oct. 23, 1989: The search resumes at 8 a.m. Department of Natural Resources officers use all-terrain vehicles to search a 2-mile radius around the abduction site. Helicopters fly over a 25-square-mile area. A Minneapolis bloodhound leads officers to tire tracks, prompting officers to believe the kidnapper had a car nearby. By 1:30 p.m., fliers are distributed.

Oct. 24, 1989: An FBI expert in psychological profiles flies in from Washington, D.C., to join about 14 other investigators.

[...]

July 2, 2010: Stearns County Sheriff John Sanner said investigators released “a number of items” during a search of the St. Joseph Township property. It could take months for the items to be analyzed. Sanner calls Dan Rassier, a man who lives at the property, a person of interest in Jacob’s disappearance.

[..]

2014-2015: The Stearns County Sheriff's Office, the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and the FBI conducted a full, cold-case review of the Wetterling case. It resulted in the identification of leads and other avenues of investigation. Authorities say examination of DNA evidence connected Heinrich to a sexual assault case of a 12-year-old boy in Cold Spring, 10 months before Jacob disappeared. On the basis of that evidence, authorities obtained a search warrant. Authorities say evidence of child was discovered.

(read the entire timeline at the link)

 

[bessie]

Danny Heinrich on Wetterling investigators' radar since 1989
By: Courtney Godfrey
Posted:Oct 29 2015 09:32PM CDT
Updated:Oct 30 2015 01:27PM CDT

[...]

Robert Dudley wrote a book on the investigation and said this break in the case doesn’t come as a surprise to him. The author is only the most recent to hand over evidence pointing to Heinrich.

[...]

A private investigator, whose notes are used in Dudley's book, interviewed a man once considered the main suspect in the case.

"That suspect actually suggested that Heinrich had committed the crime,” Dudley said. “He described Heinrich's car, and police scanner radio as being very similar to that in Jared's case."

[...]

"I sent the notes to Stearns County and the FBI and I don't know if it was helpful or not,” he said.

(continued with video at the link)

---

FBI names person of interest in Jacob Wetterling abduction
Posted:Oct 29 2015 12:43PM CDT
Updated:Oct 30 2015 08:57AM CDT

[...]

According to the complaint, the person of interest acknowledged that he had child in his home, stating that some of the things law enforcement would find are "pretty damning...

"Heinrich faces significant prison time if convicted on the child charges. He made an appearance in federal court in St. Paul on Thursday and will have a detention hearing in the near future.

---

Annandale Man Named 'Person of Interest' in Jacob Wetterling Case
By KSTP TV on Oct 29, 2015 at 3:35 p.m.

[...]

Investigators say they found more than 100 pictures of suspected child at the home. They say they found 19 three-ring binders that were full of images of children, including naked, young boys. Some of them were known child victims, Luger said.

They also found hours of videos, apparently recorded by Heinrich, of neighborhood children delivering newspapers, riding bikes, playing on playgrounds and participating in sports.

[...]

Luger said Heinrich was interviewed by investigators about the disappearance of Wetterling, and he denied any involvement in it. Stearns County Sheriff John Sanner also said Heinrich was looked at “very closely” in 1989 and 1990, and that he is “not someone new to us.”