Members of Jayme Closs’ family have told DailyMail.com that they will be in court later today to ‘look Jake Patterson in the eye,’ as he makes his first appearance in Barron County Circuit Court.
Speaking on the eve of Patterson’s arraignment Jayme’s aunt Jennifer Smith, 48, revealed that they had made the difficult decision to face down the man accused of kidnapping the 13-year-old and gunning down her parents – whom he saw as a ‘barrier’ to her, his target -on the advice of law enforcement.
She said: ‘I won’t be there but my brother and sister will be there to look him in the eye.’
Jennifer described the court appearance as, ‘the next step towards healing,’ in this long and difficult process.
She said, ‘We were advised by agents that this would be a good thing, so yes some of the family will be there.’
Family members of Jayme Closs’ (pictured with her aunt Sue Naiberg Allard) told DailyMail.com they will be in court later today to ‘look Jake Patterson in the eye,’ as he makes his first appearance in Barron County Circuit Court
It has been barely four days since Jayme fled the remote cabin in Gordon, Wisconsin where 21-year-old Jake Thomas Patterson is accused of having held her hostage for 87 days
Speaking on the eve of Patterson’s arraignment Jayme’s aunt Jennifer Smith, 48, (left with Jayme’s aunt Sue Allard) revealed they had made the difficult decision to face down the man accused of kidnapping the 13-year-old and gunning down her parents – whom he saw as a ‘barrier’ to her, his target -on the advice of law enforcement
It has been barely four days since Jayme fled the remote cabin in Gordon, Wisconsin where 21-year-old Jake Thomas Patterson is accused of having held her hostage for 87 days in a crime that propelled the small Wisconsin town of Barron, with a population of just over 3,000, unwilling into the spotlight.
Barron County Sheriff, Chris Fitzgerald has always maintained that his mission was to ‘bring Jayme home.’ But faced with the violence of the apparently targeted attack and abduction in the early hours of October 15 he was forced to admit that his assertion was based on nothing more concrete than hope.
Ultimately, he has said, the thirteen-year-old herself broke the case after she escaped and ‘turned up like a ghost,’ 70 miles from her home in rural Wisconsin.
Yet despite her ordeal her grandfather, Robert Naiberg, said she is doing ‘exceptionally well,’ and in ‘exceptionally high spirits good spirits for what she went through.’
As Jayme’s family prepares to face down Patterson in court, DailyMail.com obtained exclusive photos of the squalid basement ‘cell’ where cops believe she could have been kept prisoner for 88 days.
The secret den complete with a scruffy mattress and cuddly stuffed pig is beneath Patterson’s tumbledown forest cabin in rural Gordon, Wisconsin.
Patterson, 21, is believed to have lived at the isolated woodland home until his arrest on charges of kidnapping and intentional homicide
As Jayme’s family prepares to face down Patterson in court, DailyMail.com obtained exclusive photos of the squalid basement ‘cell’ where cops believe she could have been kept prisoner
The den was filled with soft toys, a dirty mattress, women’s clothing, and women’s makeup
The image above shows the filthy basement den where authorities believe 13-year-old Jayme Closs was held prisoner by her alleged abductor, Jake Thomas Patterson, 21
A stash of kids’ backpacks, including one with panda ears, can be seen piled up in one corner of the 8ft by 8ft room.
Police sources say investigators are zeroing in on the creepy lair as they try to establish the exact spot where 13-year-old Jayme was imprisoned after Patterson allegedly slaughtered her parents and snatched her.
They are also understood to have examined an adjacent basement compartment, a former wine cellar, which was the only room in the house which had its curtains drawn when officers arrived Thursday to search the ramshackle property following Jayme’s remarkable escape.
Patterson, 21, is believed to have lived at the isolated woodland home until his arrest on charges of kidnapping and intentional homicide.
The surrounding 2.5 acre lot is littered with old cars, rusty bikes and an assortment of junk, while a sign saying ‘Patterson’s Retreat’ greets visitors as they approach the two-story, $110,000 dwelling.
Twinkling Christmas decorations are still strung across the yard and many of the lights are still on inside the wooden house – suggesting the occupant left in a hurry and didn’t have a chance to return.
The image above shows the cabin in rural Wisconsin where Jake Patterson allegedly held 13-year-old Jayme Closs prisoner for nearly three months
The window with the blue tape leads inside to the basement ‘cell’ where authorities fear Jayme was held prisoner
This part of the home appeared to be well-equipped. It has a furnace, a television, a couch, and lights
A number of coats are seen hanging from hangers on the wall on the left. The room on the right appears to have a washing machine
Chillingly, a mound of trash strewn beside a garage includes an empty box of 80 adult Member’s Mark diapers.
Lying nearby in the snow are empty bottles of sugary alcoholic drinks such as cranberry and lime Smirnoff Ice, Henry’s Hard Soda and black cherry White Claw, as well as discarded bags of chips.
What looks like a recently baked and eaten tray of pasta was dumped outside.
The cabin itself is filled with an assortment of tatty old furniture, from rocking chairs to fans and years-old televisions and stereos.
Dirty plates are piled up in a dated kitchen.
Inside the main living room is a half-finished game of Monopoly and a book entitled ‘U.S. Armed Forces Survival Guide’.
A hammer, a flashlight, a scouring pad, scissors and a spray bottle of cleaning fluid are piled on a table.
Investigators think it’s possible that Jayme could have spent time in different areas of the house before being bundled into the basement whenever Patterson thought someone was visiting.