Man, 21, Arrested After Missing 13-Year-Old Jayme Closs Found in Wisconsin

Jayme disappeared after her parents were found murdered in their Wisconsin home in October.

Jayme Closs, whose parents were found shot dead in their Wisconsin home in October, has been found alive after three months missing.

Police were called after the 13-year-old walked up to a stranger around 65 miles from where she went missing and asked for help on Thursday afternoon, according to reports. 

Peter Kasinskas, a resident of Gordon, told CBS News he opened the door to his neighbor saying, “This is Jayme Closs,” and asking him to call authorities. 

Kasinskas said Jayme looked thinner, “unkempt” and was wearing men’s shoes. He said she was silent until authorities arrived 15 minutes afterward.

“She saw this girl screaming 'help me, help me,'" Kasinskas told the station of his neighbor. "It was literally like we were seeing a ghost, because we have seen the billboards and the commercials and all that stuff, and there she is in my kitchen, you know."

Jayme went missing on Oct. 15, when her parents, James and Denise Closs, were found shot dead in their Barron home. An anonymous 911 call led authorities to discover their bodies. Police said they believed the teen was still alive and in danger.

Authorities spent months searching for her and received thousands of tips, to no avail until Thursday. Jayme told police she escaped from her captor's home, which was in a remote area outside Gordon. It was not clear how far she walked before running into the woman walking her dog.  

"That is the will of a kid to survive," Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald said at a press conference Friday. "It's amazing, the will of that 13-year-old girl to escape."  

Jayme was able to provide a description of a car driven by her alleged captor. Police pulled him over minutes later.

Jake Patterson, 21, was arrested and is expected to be charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of kidnapping, police said. After he was pulled over, he surrendered peacefully, Fitzgerald said. 

Patterson is believed to have allegedly targeted Jayme, but there appeared to have been no contact between the pair prior to her abduction, officials said. 

He is believed to have "taken some measures" to avoid detection and conceal Jayme from those who knew him. He has no known criminal history. He has several vehicles, which police are searching. 

Gordon, the area in which Jayme was found, was apparently not on investigators' radar, police said. Patterson, who police said is unemployed, is believed to have ties to Barron County.

Formal charges are expected to be filed against Patterson next week. After charges are filed, he will appear in court. On Friday, Jayme underwent medical and mental evaluations, spoke to law enforcement and was scheduled to be reunited with her family. 

"It has been 88 days of hope for her safe return, 88 days of prayers for Jayme ... 88 days of holding onto the faith that our authorities would never give up, and they certainly did not, 88 days with the same goal in mind: that was to bring Jayme home and back into our arms," Barron Area School District Administrator Diane Tremblay said. 

"Jayme, we missed you, and we are so grateful you are home."

RELATED STORIES

Latest News