Jayme Closs, the thirteen year old girl from Wisconsin who was kidnapped nearly three months ago after her parents were murdered, is free now because she managed to escape her captor and find a women who was walking her dog on Thursday night, according to the Barron County Sheriff's Department.
The man who allegedly kidnapped Jayme and killed her parents planned his actions well-ahead of time, and had Jayme as his intended target from the beginning, Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald said in a press conference Friday.
Fitzgerald laid out the timeline of Jayme's escape in the press conference. Listen to the full audio below.
Key points from Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald:
- On Thursday night, a woman walking her dog was approached by a girl, who said she was Jayme Closs. She was.
- The woman took Jayme Closs to a nearby home, and called law enforcement. The Douglas County Sheriff's Office responded, and took Jayme Closs.
- Within 10 minutes, a patrol sergeant found vehicle matching a description given by Jayme Closs, pulled the vehicle over and arrested the suspect.
- Jake Thomas Patterson, 21, has been charged with two counts of murder and one count of kidnapping
- Detectives believe Jayme Closs was Patterson's intended target and that he had no previous contact with the family.
- Detectives believe he planned his actions and took many proactive steps to hide his identity from the general public.
- He also took steps to hide Jayme Closs once he kidnapped her, Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald.
