The dog walker who rescued Jayme Closs after finding her wandering the woods in Wisocnsin has described the moment she happened upon the kidnapped teen.
Jeanne Nutter said at first she didn’t recognize Jayme, who had been missing for 88 days at that point, but immediately knew the girl was in trouble.
‘It was 19 or 20F outside and she only had a sweatshirt on and maybe some black leggings,’ Nutter said in an interview with CBS.
‘I though she was in her slippers so I figured she left wherever she was in a hurry or someone drove here and dropped her off.’
Jeanne Nutter has described the moment she discovered Jayme Closs wandering in the woods in Wisconsin last week, 88 days after she went missing
Nutter said at first she didn’t recognize Jayme, but knew the girl was in trouble because she was only wearing a sweater and leggings despite it being 20F outside
As Nutter quickened her pace to catch up with Jayme she recognized the teen, who fell into her arms saying: ‘I’m Jayme’
Nutter said she that as she approached the girl, she heard her saying: ‘I’m lost, I don’t know where I am, I need help.’
It was only after Nutter quickened her pace to catch up with the mystery figure that she realized who she was.
‘I got to her and she just sort of fell into me and said, “I’m Jayme”, and I said, “I know,”‘ Nutter revealed.
Jayme was first reported missing on October 15 last year after police were called to her family home and found her parents James, 56, and Denise, 46, shot dead.
Officers quickly ruled Jayme out as a suspect and instead concluded that she had been kidnapped, before launching a manhunt.
Despite reviewing almost 2,000 tips, investigators had found no concrete evidence of Jayme’s whereabouts until she appeared last week.
Jayme was found ‘skinny and dirty but outwardly OK’ after escaping her captor and happening upon Nutter.
The Kaiskais family, who lived next door to Nutter, have described how the dog-walker brought Jayme to their home after finding her.
Jake Thomas Patterson, 21, has been arrested and accused of murdering Jayme’s parents in a highly orchestrated plot before keeping her captive
Police are examining various locations at Patterson’s woodland home where they believe Jayme was kept, including this basement
The image above shows stuffed toys and other accessories on the mattress inside the den. The home is located in rural Gordon, Wisconsin
The den was filled with soft toys, a dirty mattress, women’s clothing, and women’s makeup
Kristin Kasiskas told Fox: ‘When our neighbor Jeanne came in with Jayme, she said: “Get a gun. We don’t know if he’s after us.”
‘So we were armed and ready in case this person showed up.’
The couple quickly called 911 and Jayme gave a description of the car that kidnapper Jake Patterson, 21, was driving.
Police say that he was driving round hunting for Jayme after he noticed her missing.
The Kasinskas said that three officers arrived at their home, took Closs to safety and told Kristin and their kids to get away from the windows in case the kidnapper tried to enter.
Kristin’s husband was asked to stand guard outside the door on the upper floor.
The suspect was arrested a short time later, near their home.
Police have since named him as 21-year-old Jake Patterson and accused him of kidnapping Jayme as part of a meticulously planned operation.
Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald said Jayme was ‘targeted’ for the kidnapping, and that Patterson had worked at a turkey processing plant where Jayme’s parents James and Denise also worked.
However, the turkey plant owner said Patterson was hired one day and quit the next, explaining that he was moving away from the area.
Patterson was arrested close to the home in his car while apparently out searching for Jayme after she managed to escape
Jayme went missing from the home she shared with parents James, 56, and Denise, 46, after they were shot dead with a shotgun in October last year
TIMELINE OF JAYME CLOSS’ DISAPPEARANCE
Jayme Closs was missing for three months
Oct. 15, 2018 – Jayme’s parents, James and Denise Closs, found dead at their home in Barron and the teen is reported missing
Oct. 16, 2018 – Investigators say they don’t consider Jayme a suspect in her parents’ deaths
Oct. 17, 2018 – Authorities announce that investigators believe Jayme was in her family’s home when he parents were fatally shot
Oct. 18, 2018 – About 100 people join a ground search for Jayme after Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald requests the help of volunteers
Oct. 23, 2018 – About 2,000 volunteers from as far as Minneapolis help with another ground search . Several items are found and taken for assessment
Oct. 24, 2018 – The FBI offers a $25,000 reward for information leading to Jayme’s location. The amount is later doubled to $50,000 by the Jennie-O Turkey Store, where James and Denise Closs worked
Oct. 27, 2018 – Funeral held for James and Denise Closs
Oct. 29, 2018 – Prosecutors announce they have charged a man with burglarizing the Closs home but say he’s not a suspect in the case.
Dec. 12, 2018 – Tree of Hope lit as community prays for her safe return
Jan. 10, 2019 – After three months Jayme is found alive in Gordon, Wisconsin. A suspect is taken into custody.
Jan. 11, 2019 – Police named the man accused of kidnapping her as Jake Thomas Patterson, 21
Fitzgerald said there was no evidence that Patterson knew any of the Closs family personally before the attack.
Fitzgerald also revealed the tactics Patterson employed to avoid being caught.
He said Patterson shaved his head before the night of the murders, both to change his appearance and avoid leaving trace evidence.
However, officers are confident they have got their man after raiding his home and finding the shotgun which they say was used to blast into the Closs family home and slaughter James and Denise.
Authorities are now searching through Patterson’s phones, computers and his car.
Officers say Jayme was held in various parts of Patterson’s home in Gordon, Wisconsin – around 70 miles from where he parents lived – before her escape.
Images taken by Dailymail.com reveal a basement where it is believed the teen lived during some of her captivity, filled with a scruffy mattress and cuddly stuffed pig.
Officers are also understood to have examined an adjacent basement compartment, a former wine cellar, where she could also have been kept.
Patterson is in custody charged with two counts of first-degree intentional homicide and one count of kidnapping.
He is due to make his initial court appearance January 14.