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Five questions
Posted by joy.the.curious on Aug 29, 2014 in Jacob | 18 comments
Patty Wetterling posted an article on CNN’s web site yesterday. It’s titled, “Five questions for my son’s abductor,” and it is one of the most powerful, heart-wrenching things I have ever read. I’m sharing it here in the hopes it can reach as many people as possible.
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Five questions for my son’s abductor
Editor’s note: Patty Wetterling is a tireless advocate for families of missing children, including her son Jacob Wetterling, who was abducted in 1989 when he was 11. Jacob’s story will be featured on “The Hunt with John Walsh” Sunday at 9 p.m. ET.
(CNN) — October 22 will mark 25 years since my son Jacob was taken from his family as he rode his bike home with his brother and a friend on a rural Minnesota road.
Jacob was a fun, active, athletic, kind, 11-year-old boy who loved peanut butter and football. He was most known for his sense of fairness.
Not knowing what happened or who abducted Jacob has left so many unanswered questions for Jacob’s father, sisters, brother and me.
If I had the chance to talk face to face with the man who took my son away, here’s what I’d want to know:
Who are you?
I believe that somebody knows. It’s time to quit protecting the bad guy, even if it is a family member. It’s time to speak up for Jacob. Please tell me who took our son.
If YOU are the abductor, it’s time to tell. You can’t feel good about this. Find some peace. Please write back.
Is Jacob still alive?
Sometimes the phone rings and there is no one there. It’s probably a telemarketer or a wrong number, but my heart cries out, “Jacob, are you there?” I save articles of “kids” who came home after long periods of time: three months, nine months, four years, 7½ years, 10 years, 18½ years.
It CAN happen. I don’t know, so I hope and pray that you got away, Jacob. We need you back. We love you more than the flowers love the sun and the rain. My heart wants to believe you’re OK.
Please give us some answers.
What made you think you could steal a child?
Jacob is so deeply loved and missed by his mom and dad, brother, sisters, cousins, neighbors and friends. I have read a lot about kidnappers and child molesters and I know that you are all people, human beings that need help.
Maybe you feel bad. Maybe you told someone, but I still live with so many questions — like, how could you? And how could anyone still keep the secret? You can free yourself of carrying this. Please explain this to me.
Why didn’t you let him go?
What happened? You probably had other boys that you victimized and released. I think you meant to let him go and something went terribly wrong. I need to know what happened. Please talk to me.
What was the last thing that Jacob said to you?
Jacob had a keen sense of fairness and always stood up for people who he thought needed an ally, a friend. He probably would have befriended you too. I need to hear his voice again or to hear the last words he said if he can’t speak to me himself. Please tell me.
Next time
John Walsh and Jared on WCCO Radio
18 Comments
Tamara | August 29, 2014 at 9:57 am
Heart breaking. As a mother of 2 boys, one of them 11, I can only say that Patty Wetterling is a woman to admire. I pray that she gets answers. I pray that someone comes forward. I pray for her and her family.
Kathy | August 29, 2014 at 11:04 am
Patty Wetterling you are an inspiration to all. I hope you and other families of missing children/members of families get answers. We will pray for you and the families of the missing. Not only are those abducted the victims but the friends and family become victims as well. Thank you for being a voice, alongside John Walsh.
Betty | August 29, 2014 at 11:52 am
Like the miracles of the return of Jaycee Duggard and Elizabeth Smart (among others), I pray that Mrs. Wetterling experiences the same kind of miracle . . . the return of her beloved son. What a brave, courageous and admirable woman.
joan | August 29, 2014 at 6:05 pm
If the abductor is reading this, please give this family some relief and yourself. This story has affected all of minnesota, how we raise our kids, and the worry of something going wrong with our children. It has stolen an innocence from our communities and our children. Please tell them! By mail, Internet, any way possible.
meredithmclovin | September 1, 2014 at 7:20 am
I watched Jacob’s story on The Hunt last night. I watched it twice as CNN aired it back to back. I have a tremendous amount of respect and empathy for both John Walsh and Patty Wetterling. What two incredibly strong people, they both strike me as the proverbial Phoenix rising from the ashes. In the faces of such great tragedies, John Walsh goes on to play a major role in apprehending somewhere around 1,300 criminals, Patty Wetterling forms the Jacob Wetterling foundation that provides much needed services to families in the same situation. What two incredible, brave people who can use their unimaginable heartache for the greater good, to make a significant impact on society.
As John Walsh said, once a case starts to go cold the only person that can keep it alive is a loved one. Patty has done a tremendous job of keeping Jacob’s case alive for 25 years. Her last to questions to her son’s abductor really affected me emotionally. I have a young son and couldn’t help imagining the pain and terror I would experience in his abduction. I could never stop wondering what happened, never stop thinking about / speculating on the details of his experience. It would never stop haunting you until you found truth and justice. I want this so badly for the Wetterlings.
Thank you for your help, Joy, in keeping the case alive as well. It sounded last night like you had a suspect in mind. It sounds like the police are working on something. I hope it leads to the answers the Wetterlings so desperately deserve. My thoughts and prayers are with you all in Minnesota.
Sue | September 1, 2014 at 6:24 pm
I also have followed Jacob’s story from the beginning. I worked in St. Cloud and lived in Elk River at the time and remember driving home after work scanning the roads and ditches for any sign of this young boy. Patty is an inspiration in her tireless pursuit for the answer -what happened to Jacob? I can’t believe the Paynesville assaults are not connected to Jared or Jacob.
After reading the previous posts and comments, the guy who did this is most likely a loner, on the “fringes” of society, that no one paid much attention to. I don’t believe it would have been someone the Paynesville boys had any contact with, i.e. coach, boy scout leader, pastor, etc. I believe they would have gotten a sense of familiarity with their attacker. I also believe he spread out, geographically speaking, to stalk a new area. I wonder what time the shift work at the milk processing plant got off, since the timing of all the assaults seem the same.
Keep digging Joy, I believe this will be solved. Someone will step forward with that crucial piece of information that will help solve this abduction.
justPam (@justPam99) | September 1, 2014 at 9:56 pm
After watching The Hunt on CNN last night, I was reminded of this horrific event. I applaud your effort Joy, and dogged determination to solve this case. There must be a link between the events in Paynesville, the abduction of Jared, and what happened to Jacob. What were the ages of the boys? Why was Jacob’s abductor curious about the ages of the boys? Is there a connection to the age of the boys? Was there some sort of obsession with a boy of that age? Have FBI profilers had another look at this case in recent years?
Kyle Hanson | September 2, 2014 at 7:28 am
I wonder why some of the individual cases in Paynesville were discussed in the CNN “The Hunt” show but why weren’t the details discussed? Such as the car details, the mask, etc. These are things people might remember and come forward with. The same thing with Jared’s story. Very few details about the attacker’s clothes, car, etc. They pretty much just told the whole Jacob story again. I hope something can come of it but I was disappointed in the show. Sorry
nataliekaymog | September 2, 2014 at 3:49 pm
Joy, did Jared ever see DAH in a police line up?
Ramona Keller | September 3, 2014 at 1:33 am
I have lived outside of Spicer since 1984 and don’t remember ever hearing about the Paynesville assaults until I read your blog! The Jacob Wetterling abduction, though, changed my life for 2 reasons: 1)he was with other kids, 2)it happened on a country road. Because of this, I won’t let my daughter ride her bike on our country road unless she is with her dad or myself.
Learning of the Paynesville assaults shocked me. Why weren’t these assaults connected to Jacob and Jared at anytime in the last 25 years? Delbert Huber stated he has been interviewed several times re:Jacob Wetterling. Do we know why? Can we find out what type of cars the Hubers were driving 1986-89? Did they have a job/alibi during the time of these assaults? Has anyone questioned Timothy Huber since Delbert has died? He may feel free to talk now.
I’ve always considered myself an “armchair detective”, but my resources and access to information is limited. I pray that someonesteps forward to help investigate these cases. The Wetterlings-and the Paynesville victims- deserve answers and closure to these awful events.
Thank you to all my brave neighbors in Paynesville for coming forward with your stories. Keep it up! What may seem insignificant to you may be the key that solves this mystery.Tom | September 3, 2014 at 10:19 am
The Jacob Wetterling case has always had a special meaning for me. Jacob and I are about the same age and we both grew up in small towns in Minnesota. Until his abduction, I was very naive and always had a “that will never happen here” mentality.
As of now, I relate more to the case as a parent, since I now have kids of my own. I can’t imagine what the Wetterlings are going through, and as John Walsh said, the not knowing has to be excruciatingly painful.
I was intrigued by the part of the program where Joy Baker said they were re-interviewing a suspect they looked at earlier. When John Sanner said he couldn’t comment on specific evidence, I did wonder if maybe they they have more evidence and stronger leads than they’re making public. I sure hope so.
My biggest worry is that the person who took Jacob is dead, as he is likely the only person with any of the answers. John Walsh has said that pedophiles are the hardest criminals to catch because they often don’t tell anyone about their crimes.
In regard to the Wetterling case, I don’t subscribe to the theory that someone out there, other than the suspect, knows something. I hope I’m wrong, but it’s quite possible the perpetrator took the secret of what happened to Jacob to his grave.
Anyway, I greatly admire your work, Joy. Thank you for bringing attention to this case and keeping it in the public eye.
Tamara | September 3, 2014 at 10:21 am
Ramona – I have also been thinking along your line of thought. Why was Delbert Huber considered a suspect back in 89, besides the fact that he looked a lot like the man in the sketches? Did he have a history of sexual abuse? Had he ever been convicted for similar offenses? And why was he reinterviewed just before his death? Have the police gone back to interview Timothy now that his dad has passed? Like you said, he may have a few answers that he will feel free to share now. Just thoughts. I do understand that we here don’t have half the information, but who knows, asking questions might bring some sort of closure to this terrible tragedy.
Jenna | September 3, 2014 at 1:35 pm
I feel as though the abductor is reading this.. I don’t know why I feel he is but I believe he is.
Abductor,
Come forward. Keeping this big of a secret must be killing you on the inside. Jacob’s family needs answers. Please come forward.Bill | September 4, 2014 at 2:27 pm
It’s time to relieve Sheriff Sanner of his position. He is the lead authority on this case and was the lead authority on arresting Kyle Larson. Sheriff Sanner has divulged nothing in regards to this case and continues to offer excuses as to why he hasn’t denounced Dan Rassier as a Person of Interest. Lets elect a new Sheriff who will be more forthcoming with his constituents.
Tom | September 5, 2014 at 1:51 pm
Bill, I agree that Sheriff Sanner should have cleared Dan Rassier as a suspect long ago, so you make a valid point there. On the whole, though, I think Sanner deserves the benefit of the doubt.
Sanner is in a tough spot when it comes to deciding what information to release to the public. On one hand, he needs the public’s help insofar as any information about the suspect, the events of that night, etc. They need to (and have) released information about the physical description of the suspect and the similarities between Jacob and Jared’s abductions and the Paynesville attacks.
On the other hand, the release of certain information could really damage the case. Let’s say he releases the name of the suspect (we’ll call him Mr. X) they’re currently re-interviewing (as mentioned in the CNN documentary). Who’s to say someone, after reading the suspect’s name in the newspaper, couldn’t call authorities with a totally bogus story and say, ‘Oh yeah, I saw Mr. X at Tom Thumb that night'”? If he makes too much information about evidence and suspects public, the public can craft made-up stories to match the information that’s been released.
I think law enforcement has done the best they can with this case, given how little evidence they’ve had to work with. The only known eyewitnesses are two young boys who were scared out of their wits, and what they might have been able to see and remember was impeded by the fact it was dark and the abductor was wearing a mask. Not much physical evidence at the scene, either.
I feel for Sheriff Sanner. He’s been working on this case since day 1, so I imagine it’s taken quite the personal toll on him.
Ginger | September 6, 2014 at 12:31 am
I noticed in the story that followed Jacob’s on The Hunt, the police were willing to give so much more information. I am sure they would need to prosecute in that case, just like they would in Jacob’s. So the Sheriff saying he was not willing to say much because he would need to prosecute did not make a lot of sense to me.
It sounds like the Paynesville cases and Jacob’s could be related, but the person would really have to have a connection to the area to be hiding on a dirt road as the boys rode their bikes by. I suppose he could of been in the area and seen them riding their bikes to the store and then knew they would have to come back that way.
I have kept my 7 year old much closer after Jacob’s story aired on The Hunt though!! We live in a small town, but it makes you realize it could happen anywhere.
Jenna | September 6, 2014 at 1:55 pm
hmm. I say get me into the prison systems and let me question delberts son. I can almost guarantee if his father is the one who did this, I can get answers 😉 but keep going Joy as you are an inspiration to all of us and you helped re-open this case after bringing this into light.
Ryan | October 23, 2014 at 12:16 am
Tom.. I agree with you. I think the law enforcement has to withhold certain information to prevent somebody calling in and making up a story. Then it could have tragic consequences on the whole investigation. They have to withhold the suspects name in order to cause people from screwing the whole thing up.