NE NE - Jason Jolkowski -19 - Omaha - 13 Jun 2001 - #4

[Andreee]

If those long evening walks happened, then it shows Jason clearly felt safe enough to walk around the neighborhood at that time. People have tried to look up sketchy houses and local RSOs to support the theory that he was randomly targeted or lured to his death, but it would be strange for it to happen that morning rather than all the times Jason was walking the streets later in the day. Personally, I don't think that's what took place.

Like I said, the key to this is that Jason's plans got changed last minute. Jason suggested he get picked up at Benson High School, presumably because he wasn't good at directions, but imo that allowed him to briefly visit that person's house on the way to school. Of course, we don't know the relationship Jason had with this person, e.g. whether it was a romantic one whether it was an illicit one (was Jason doing illegal activities for some extra cash?), and that person got violent.

The walk to the school was approx 10 minutes, so there was a only small window of time for Jason to disappear. The abductor lived somewhere in that radius between Jason's and Benson High.

Also, can anyone confirm if it's true that when the coworker called the Jolkowskis, Michael answered and initially pretended to be Jason? Anyone else think that's odd? Maybe he was just messing around, or maybe he was covering for his brother because he knew Jason was going somewhere else first?

Good points. I am one of those who looked extensively at homes & SO's in the area but I wonder if records are available for that particular year. As you mention, JJ walked safely at night but to be abducted at 10:45 in the morn?! I do think his younger brother pretending to be Jason on the phone was just a prank in which the timing was very unfortunate!! It happens.

 

[deadinthewater]

If it was indeed a targeted attack by a person Jason knew/was seeing privately, why risk harming him at this time? When he was due somewhere (work) and where his route could easily be traced/ reproduced by LE or his family (home to Benson) when he inevitably turned up missing? Wouldn't that narrow down where this suspect lived or was hanging about? Obviously, things didn't turn out this way because it's been two decades without answers, but the perpetrator couldn't have known that.

 

[Danaya]

I don't think Jason was abducted, I think he went willingly. I don't know what the person(s) motives were, if they were nefarious from the start.

 

[ekardh]

If it was indeed a targeted attack by a person Jason knew/was seeing privately, why risk harming him at this time? When he was due somewhere (work) and where his route could easily be traced/ reproduced by LE or his family (home to Benson) when he inevitably turned up missing? Wouldn't that narrow down where this suspect lived or was hanging about? Obviously, things didn't turn out this way because it's been two decades without answers, but the perpetrator couldn't have known that.

That is an astute question, and it's one that I've constantly turned over in my head when thinking about this case.

The perpetrator would've been protected by the fact that no one else know his connection to Jason. As far as we know, no persons of interest have ever been named. There isn't anyone Jason was known to spend time with who could have information about his disappearance. Let's assume that this person was part of the church community. They might have outwardly appeared to be a trusted, upstanding person who didn't give off any red flags.

They also would have been lucky that Jason appeared to be an introverted person without an extensive social network. It's not as if Jason had many friends, or a girlfriend, who might have been privy to anything going on in his private life.

But yes, why the perpetrator decided to strike at that time is a headscratcher. My only real guesses are that the preparations for Jason's disappearance had already been planned that day, and he decided to follow through, OR he was angered by Jason letting him down that day (for whatever reason) and turned violent.

 

[Vital Forces]

Also, can anyone confirm if it's true that when the coworker called the Jolkowskis, Michael answered and initially pretended to be Jason? Anyone else think that's odd? Maybe he was just messing around, or maybe he was covering for his brother because he knew Jason was going somewhere else first?

I've posted this point before and it needs to be repeated.

This was 2001. Caller-ID was just becoming widespread. It was in the era before you knew the name and phone number of the person before you answered.

A child answering the phone and informing any random person on the other end that he was home alone would have been dangerous. Even if it was an indirect clue. I'm old enough to remember John Walsh warning us about such things.

So it's never seemed odd to me that he briefly pretended to be his 19 year old brother.

Always understand the technology available and the mindset of the people living at the time when analyzing the past. Something being common today may not have even existed decades ago.

 

[Ignorant_Bystander]

"If it was indeed a targeted attack by a person Jason knew/was seeing privately, why risk harming him at this time?" I wonder if he stopped by the house of someone he knew unexpectedly that day (maybe he visited this same person during his long walks), saw something he shouldn't have, and had to be killed to protect a secret

 

[ekardh]

I've posted this point before and it needs to be repeated.

This was 2001. Caller-ID was just becoming widespread. It was in the era before you knew the name and phone number of the person before you answered.

A child answering the phone and informing any random person on the other end that he was home alone would have been dangerous. Even if it was an indirect clue. I'm old enough to remember John Walsh warning us about such things.

So it's never seemed odd to me that he briefly pretended to be his 19 year old brother.

Always understand the technology available and the mindset of the people living at the time when analyzing the past. Something being common today may not have even existed decades ago.

I'm old enough to remember such a time, but under the circumstances, would Jason's brother feel vulnerable enough to pretend to be someone else? It was 11:30 in the morning, and it was the young female coworker who called the house. I would argue that the danger Michael felt by answering the phone was generally low.

 

[MatthewTyler]

The Michael disguising his voice thing is such a big nothing burger imo. There isn't any evidence that it even happened, since Michael himself has never given any kind of interview regarding that day. I've seen comments online suggesting that Michael was involved somehow because of him pretending to be Jason, which is just insane. I do not think he was involved, nor do I think he would have had any idea of Jason making a pit stop that morning before going to the school. If Jason was doing something that he didn't want his family to know about, then a 13 year old brother definitely wouldn't make the confidant list. There's a world of difference in maturity between a 13 year old and a 20 year old. 13 is still an age where there's a chance of Michael reporting everything to mom and dad.

 

[dulcinea]

How did it come out that Michael pretended to be Jason? Was someone just recapping all of the events of the day Jason disappeared?

 

[ekardh]

The Michael disguising his voice thing is such a big nothing burger imo. There isn't any evidence that it even happened, since Michael himself has never given any kind of interview regarding that day. I've seen comments online suggesting that Michael was involved somehow because of him pretending to be Jason, which is just insane. I do not think he was involved, nor do I think he would have had any idea of Jason making a pit stop that morning before going to the school. If Jason was doing something that he didn't want his family to know about, then a 13 year old brother definitely wouldn't make the confidant list. There's a world of difference in maturity between a 13 year old and a 20 year old. 13 is still an age where there's a chance of Michael reporting everything to mom and dad.

Michael disguising his voice is most likely something of nothing, but after all this time, I don't see anything wrong with reviewing the events of that day, particularly when there hasn't been a single lead in 25 years.

I don't think the corollary to this is that Michael was complicit in Jason's disappearance. Jason might have told him that he was going somewhere first, so Michael naturally covered for his brother when the co-worker called to complain, then quickly realised he was out of his depth. You'd like to think if Michael did know something of any substance, he would have shared it with investigators.

 

[BethAnn777]

If there is something nefarious about his brother impersonating Jason, what would that even mean? I absolutely think it’s nothing, but I also think it’s a good idea to consider every detail.

Saying I was my sister when someone called sounds like something I would have done as a kid just to be ornery. I used to listen to my sister’s phone calls on occasion just to be nosey and mischievous.

 

[RiddarX]

The Michael disguising his voice thing is such a big nothing burger imo. There isn't any evidence that it even happened, since Michael himself has never given any kind of interview regarding that day. I've seen comments online suggesting that Michael was involved somehow because of him pretending to be Jason, which is just insane. I do not think he was involved, nor do I think he would have had any idea of Jason making a pit stop that morning before going to the school. If Jason was doing something that he didn't want his family to know about, then a 13 year old brother definitely wouldn't make the confidant list. There's a world of difference in maturity between a 13 year old and a 20 year old. 13 is still an age where there's a chance of Michael reporting everything to mom and dad.

Right, but when there is absolutely no clues, one starts to wonder... I also must confess that the idea of the unexpected fight between brothers came at one point to my mind. Meaning that JJ never left his home at all. But that is very far fetched and not plausible, because the parents should have been also involved covering the younger brother.
I am tend to agree with Ekardh... perhaps because there have been too many perpetrators within the Catholic Church. Naturally it's just my personal feeling. Jason's case keeps on bothering my mind.

 

[Deleted member 235284]

If there is something nefarious about his brother impersonating Jason, what would that even mean? I absolutely think it’s nothing, but I also think it’s a good idea to consider every detail.

Saying I was my sister when someone called sounds like something I would have done as a kid just to be ornery. I used to listen to my sister’s phone calls on occasion just to be nosey and mischievous.

The brother was far too young to be involved with anything like that.

Just a harmless joke.

 

[BethAnn777]

The brother was far too young to be involved with anything like that.

Just a harmless joke.

Agreed!

 

[scruffydog]

Right, but when there is absolutely no clues, one starts to wonder... I also must confess that the idea of the unexpected fight between brothers came at one point to my mind. Meaning that JJ never left his home at all. But that is very far fetched and not plausible, because the parents should have been also involved covering the younger brother.
I am tend to agree with Ekardh... perhaps because there have been too many perpetrators within the Catholic Church. Naturally it's just my personal feeling. Jason's case keeps on bothering my mind.

You bring up Catholic Church-and I say so much crap and nepharious actions! I'm a recovering Catholic-just ask me-uncle raped by a priest his entire childhood- "good Catholic parents" that didn't protect him..I wouldn't put anything past them.

 

[Andreee]

You bring up Catholic Church-and I say so much crap and nepharious actions! I'm a recovering Catholic-just ask me-uncle raped by a priest his entire childhood- "good Catholic parents" that didn't protect him..I wouldn't put anything past them.

Yes, some of us here have tried to research past priests at the church Jason's family attended and where he himself did readings at the church, even recent to his disappearance. I forget if anyone came up with anything significant, but it is on past posts. Maybe someone else with a better memory can bring you up to speed lol. I don't think there was much.

 

[Danaya]

Pedophile priests are cowards. They are drawn to the priesthood because it's a role of authority, with ample opportunity to molest children and operate covertly. I don't see a priest going so far as to murder a grown up victim, JMO. Especially someone Jason's age and height. Of course, anything is possible.

I think that it's more likely it was a neighbor who was already on a sex offender list, or someone of that same ilk who lived in town. It may not have been a sexual motive, though. In that case, I'm wondering if Jason had more personal issues at play, or connections that were never made public.

 

[RiddarX]

Pedophile priests are cowards. They are drawn to the priesthood because it's a role of authority, with ample opportunity to molest children and operate covertly. I don't see a priest going so far as to murder a grown up victim, JMO. Especially someone Jason's age and height. Of course, anything is possible.

I think that it's more likely it was a neighbor who was already on a sex offender list, or someone of that same ilk who lived in town. It may not have been a sexual motive, though. In that case, I'm wondering if Jason had more personal issues at play, or connections that were never made public.

Indeed, anything is possible.
Though my imagination has at times gone very far, I can't see, what kind of Jason's personal issues or connections there might have been. According to his parents Jason was very much home-bound guy, more so than most young men at his age. Personally I believe that his parents have told all they know about his life and personality. As many here have said, there can be some secrets in his recent long walks.... Sorry, I couldn't say anything new.

 

[ekardh]

Indeed, anything is possible.
Though my imagination has at times gone very far, I can't see, what kind of Jason's personal issues or connections there might have been. According to his parents Jason was very much home-bound guy, more so than most young men at his age. Personally I believe that his parents have told all they know about his life and personality. As many here have said, there can be some secrets in his recent long walks.... Sorry, I couldn't say anything new.

He could have been spending time with someone local and using the walks as a cover story to explain his absence.

Now, if Jason WAS spending private time with someone in the evenings, why wasn't he comfortable telling his family about it? If it was just a friend, there is no need for secrecy.

Was it someone that his family would not approve of? Was Jason romantically involved with this person or caught up in something unlawful? There has to be a reason if this was the case.

 

[thegromble]

If those long evening walks happened, then it shows Jason clearly felt safe enough to walk around the neighborhood at that time. People have tried to look up sketchy houses and local RSOs to support the theory that he was randomly targeted or lured to his death, but it would be strange for it to happen that morning rather than all the times Jason was walking the streets later in the day. Personally, I don't think that's what took place.

Like I said, the key to this is that Jason's plans got changed last minute. Jason suggested he get picked up at Benson High School, presumably because he wasn't good at directions, but imo that allowed him to briefly visit that person's house on the way to school. Of course, we don't know the relationship Jason had with this person, e.g. whether it was a romantic one whether it was an illicit one (was Jason doing illegal activities for some extra cash?), and that person got violent.

The walk to the school was approx 10 minutes, so there was a only small window of time for Jason to disappear. The abductor lived somewhere in that radius between Jason's and Benson High.

Also, can anyone confirm if it's true that when the coworker called the Jolkowskis, Michael answered and initially pretended to be Jason? Anyone else think that's odd? Maybe he was just messing around, or maybe he was covering for his brother because he knew Jason was going somewhere else first?

Do you think the cash he had on him at the time could've been used to make a purchase of some kind on his way to the school?