The Wisconsin man accused of kidnapping 13-year-old Jayme Closs from her home in October after shooting and killing her parents has reportedly confessed.
Jake Patterson, 21, told authorities that he spotted Jayme getting off of a school bus and said “he knew that was the girl he was going to take.” Afterward, Patterson began planning the plot to take the young girl captive. The suspect admitted Jayme was a random target and he hadn’t had contact with her before.
Patterson reportedly told authorities that he was driving to a job at the Saputo Cheese Factory, and while on Highway 8, his car stopped behind Jayme’s school bus. Patterson didn’t give the date when he spotted Jayme.
“The defendant stated he had no idea who she was nor did he know who lived at the house or how many people lived at the house. The defendant stated, when he was [Jayme Closs], he knew that was the girl he was going to take,” the complaint read.
Patterson has been formally charged with two counts of first-degree intentional homicide, armed burglary, and kidnapping.
Patterson, according to the complaint, bought a black balaclava mask and black gloves shortly after he saw Jayme, as he plotted out the details on how and when to abduct her. Patterson said he was working at Saputo Cheese when he saw the middle schooler, but quit his job and several days later and drove by her home with the intent of taking her. He said he couldn’t go through with the kidnapping at the time, as there were “all kinds of cars in the driveway,” which scared him off.
On October 15, Patterson put his disturbing plan into action, but not before he ditched the license plates off of his older model red Ford Taurus, replacing them with license plates he reportedly stole from a vehicle he spotted in a yard near Santora.
He also wiped his father’s Mossberg pump shotgun down while wearing gloves, took a shower, and shaved off all of his hair. After dressing in a black balaclava mask, black jacket and gloves, blue jeans and steel toe boots, he set off to the Closs home, the complaint states.
The complaint also details Jayme’s experience from her recollection. According to the complaint, Jayme heard her dog barking on October 15 and walked out of her room to see why. She then noticed a car driving up her family’s driveway with the headlights off. Within minutes, Patterson was at the Closs family’s front door, where he reportedly shot the door in, then shot and killed Jayme’s father, James Closs.
Jayme said she ran to bathroom with her mother and hid, but the suspect forced his way in, then forced Jayme’s mother, Denise Closs, to put tape over Jayme’s mouth. Patterson then allegedly taped Jayme’s arms and ankles together and dragged her to his car. Patterson found the pair hiding inside the bathtub, with Denise’s arms wrapped around her daughter.
After wrapping Jayme’s arms and ankles with tape, Patterson reportedly aimed the shotgun at Denise’s head and pulled the trigger. He then dragged the girl out of her home. At one point, she almost slipped in her father’s pool of blood as the suspect dragged her with one hand, while holding a shotgun in his other hand.
When Patterson reached his car, he put Jayme in the trunk and drove away, the complaint read. He brought Jayme to his home in Gordon and realized the girl was scared as she “urinated herself and her clothing was wet.”
Once he had Jayme secluded, Patterson “made it clear that nobody was to know she was there or bad things would happen to her,” according to the complaint. When friends or relatives visited the Gordon home where Jayme was held captive, Patterson made her hide under a bed, the complaint read.
“When he made her hide under his bed, (Jayme) stated he stacked totes and laundry bins around the bed with weights (like weights for barbells) stacked against them so she could not move them without his being able to detect it if she did.”
When Patterson got angry, he reportedly hit Jayme. In one incident, he “hit her ‘really hard’ on her back with what she described as a handle for something used to clean blinds…” according to the complaint.
READ MORE: Jayme Closs: Suspected killer tried to kidnap young girl twice before succeeding [Complaint]
Patterson is expected in court on Monday at 3:30 p.m. CST.
Check back with CrimeOnline as additional details become available.
Jake Patterson Complaint, J… by on Scribd
Jayme is Discovered
On Thursday at around 4:45 p.m., a woman was walking a dog in a housing development just outside of Gordon, when a girl with matted hair approached her for help. The woman, former social services worker, Jeanne Nutter, ran to a house further down, hoping to get as far away from the home Jayme disappeared from before asking for help.
They arrived at the home of teacher Kristin Kasinskas and her husband, Peter, who live off of S. Eau Claire Acres Circle with their children.
“I was terrified, but I didn’t want to show her that,” Nutter said, according to Macon Telegraph. “She just yelled please help me I don’t know where I am. I’m lost. My only thought was to get her to a safe place.”
The neighbor, frantic, explained that the girl was Jayme, who was abducted after her parents were shot to death inside their Barron home.
“This is Jayme Closs! Call 911!” the neighbor declared.
Peter Kasinskas described Jayme’s demeanor as “flat,” according to the outlet, while Nutter explained Jayme walked up to her for assistance. While inside Kasinskas home, Jayme was offered food and drink but declined. The girl explained she had no idea where she was or anything about the area, but she thought she may have been there most the time she’s been missing.
“I honestly still think I’m dreaming right now. It was like I was seeing a ghost,” Peter Kasinskas told the outlet. “It was scary and awesome at the same time. My jaw just went to the floor.”
The Kasinkas told CBS that Jayme appeared dirty and unkempt, wearing leggings, oversized men’s shoes and a sweatshirt.
“She looked the same as in all the photos and little thinner. Her hair was still the same color and length. She just looked a little unkempt like she hadn’t been able to take care of herself or something,” Peter said.
The Bemidji Pioneer reports that prior to police arriving, Jayme reportedly told Nutter that the man who abducted her was once in the military, killed her parents, and “turns the radio up and sometimes has people come over while he is gone.”
Authorities arrived and blocked area off surrounding to a cabin off of the 14100 block of S. Eau Claire Acres Circle, then apprehended Patterson.
Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald said during a press conference on Friday that he wasn’t sure if Jayme was restrained in the home or how she managed to escape. The suspect was not in the home when she ran for help.
According to Fitzgerald, Patterson was driving around looking for Jayme when authorities pulled him over, the Chicago Tribune reports.
Police took Jayme to the Essentia Health-St. Mary’s hospital in Superior shortly after her rescue. She was held overnight for observation, then reunited with her aunt in her hometown of Barron.
“Jayme had a pretty good night sleep. It was great to know she was next to me all night. What a great feeling to have her home,” Jayme’s aunt, Jennifer Smith, wrote Saturday morning on social media, after the girl’s first night back home. “As a family we will get through all of the healing process Jayme has.”
Jayme’s Disappearance
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Jayme disappeared from her Barron home after two adults, identified as her parents, James Closs, 56, and Denise Closs, 46, were found dead a little after 1 a.m. on October 15. Both victims were shot to death. According to Fitzgerald, a 911 call from the home had noises in the background, but no one specifically spoke to the dispatcher.
The 911 dispatch log released on October 18 indicated the call to 911 came from the cellphone of Denise at close to 1 a.m. Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald indicated no one could make out the words of the caller.
“It was on a cell phone and there was no comment made — no one communicated with the dispatcher,” Fitzgerald said. “I don’t know if the word ‘help’ was said, but there was some sort of disturbance going on, which is why officers were sent to the house.”
According to the call log, the 911 dispatcher called the cell phone number back numerous times but didn’t receive an answer. Within four minutes from the time the initial call was made, officers arrived at the home, but Jayme was already gone.
Three different officers were dispatched to the family’s home, around 45 miles northwest of Eau Claire.
The first officer arrived at the family’s Barron home by 1 a.m., and 56-year-old James Closs was found by the front door. At 1:03 a.m., the officer noted that a male was down and “multiple rounds” had been spent. The incident was initially thought to be a suicide before the officer knew Denise had also been shot. At 1:06 a.m., the officer stated that the front door had apparently been kicked in.
“…ADVISED THE DOOR HAS BEEN KICKED IN. ADVISED THAT THE MALE WHO IS DOWN HAD ANSWERED THE DOOR. UNKNOWN IF ANYONE IS MISSING.” (1:06 a.m.)
At 1:11 a.m., an officer reported that both James and Denise “were down” and unresponsive. Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald later confirmed that both victims had been shot and killed. Their deaths were listed as homicides.
Over two hours later, at 3:57 a.m., officers entered Jayme into the system as a “missing juvenile.” They combed the house and area thoroughly for the teen first, noting that they couldn’t find her nor any clues to her whereabouts. At 5:13 am, dispatchers sent out a “Missing Endangered Child” notification, indicating Jayme was likely abducted from the residence. Authorities later said she was likely taken by gunpoint.Authorities previously stated they didn’t have a description of a suspect. There was nothing amiss in her home or school life on surface, and family and friends said Jayme did not have a boyfriend. Investigators reportedly searched her social media accounts and didn’t find anything unusual.
Fitzgerald reiterated that there is no evidence to suggest the suspect ever knew Jayme or her parents. Although Patterson did work at Jennie-O a few years back, the same place Jayme’s parents worked, there is no indication that he ever met or crossed paths with them. Patterson, according to Fitzgerald, only worked there one day before quitting.
Check back with CrimeOnline for additional details.
[Feature Photo: Jake Patterson/Police Handout]
