Jake Patterson, the man accused of kidnapping 13-year-old Jayme Closs and shooting her parents dead, reportedly admitted that he tried two times prior to kidnap the girl before finally succeeding on October 15.
According to the criminal complaint against Patterson, filed at the Barron Circuit Court and released Monday, Patterson targeted Jayme after spotting her getting off of a school bus. His car was behind the bus off of Highway 8 and when he saw her, Patterson said “he knew that was the girl he was going to take.”
Afterward, Patterson began planning a disturbing plot to take the young girl captive. The suspect admitted Jayme was a random target and he hadn’t had contact with her before. He didn’t even know her name.
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 spotted Jayme, 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 the second attempt, he drove back to the Closs house but noticed the lights on and people inside the residence walking around. He again drove away.
On one of the nights prior to his third and final trip to the Closs residence, Patterson reportedly removed the license plates from his car, an older model red Ford Taurus. He then drove to Highway D, heading toward Santora, where he spotted a vehicle parked in a yard. He pulled over and stole the vehicle’s license plates and put them on his own vehicle to avoid being spotted with his own plates.
Patterson also reportedly said he removed his car’s dome light and trunk light so it would be dark when he exited the car and opened the trunk. He took his dad’s shotgun with him because he thought it would be more difficult to trace while inflicting “the most damage on someone.”
Patterson wore gloves and wiped down the shotgun and its shells to avoid leaving any DNA behind. He also admitted to showering and shaving all of his hair off before going back to the Closs home on October 15. The suspect wore steel toe boots, blue jeans, a black mask and glove, and a black jacket on the night in question.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Jayme heard her dog barking on October 15 and walked out of her room to see why. She then noticed Patterson driving up her family’s driveway with the headlights of his car turned off. Within minutes, Patterson reportedly shot the door in, and shot and killed her father, James Closs.
Jayme said she ran to bathroom with her mother and hid, but the suspect forced his way in. Patterson found the pair hiding inside the bathtub, with Denise Closs’ arms wrapped around her daughter. He then Denise Closs to put tape over Jayme’s mouth. Patterson allegedly taped Jayme’s arms, wrists, and ankles together.
According to the suspect, after he wrapped Jayme in the tape, including wrapping it completely around her head, he 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.
Jake Patterson Complaint, J… by on Scribd
Patterson kept Jayme hidden under his twin-sized bed when he left or when company came over. He pushed plastic totes and weights against the bed so Jayme wouldn’t escape, and turned on his radio to drown out any noises from her. He was satisfied that he scared her enough not to leave.
On one occasion during Christmas, Patterson reportedly left Jayme under the bed for 12 hours while he visited family members in Superior. According to the complaint, he told her she would have to “hold it” if she had to go to the restroom, as she was not allowed to get out from under the bed. She was left on several occasions without food or water for hours.
On January 10, the day of his arrest, the suspect drove to Haugen. When he returned home, he noticed Jayme had fled. After driving around looking for her, he returned home, where authorities were waiting to arrest him.
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.
Check back with CrimeOnline as additional details become available.
[Feature Photo: Jayme Closs, Jake Patterson/Police Handout]
