The disappearance of a 21-year-old suburban Kansas City woman who hasn’t been seen since Thursday is considered a suspicious missing persons case after her abandoned, burned vehicle was found near a road in south Kansas City, police said.
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No one has seen or heard from 21-year-old Jessica Runions since Thursday, and now the man last seen with her is behind bars.
Kopetsky was never found, and Yust was not charged in her disappearance.
Kylr Yust, 27, was taken into custody around 8:30 a.m. Sunday, on charges of “knowingly burning” Runions’ vehicle, Kansas City Police spokeswoman Sgt. Kari Thompson said in a statement. It wasn’t immediately clear if he had an attorney who could comment on his behalf.
Yust was arrested Sunday after Jessica Runions’ vehicle was found burned and abandoned in Kansas City. That April 30, 2007, filing alleged Yust kidnapped and restrained the teenager, choked her and threatened to cut her throat during their nine-month relationship.
“I’m unsure what he will do next, because the abuse has gotten worse over time”, the application for the court intervention read, alleging Yust stalked Kopetsky and inflicted emotional and physical abuse. She was last seen at her high school in Belton, south of Kansas City and just blocks from her home. She left behind her debit card, and her checking account wasn’t touched.
Yust is the same man who was the boyfriend of Kara Kopetsky.
Weeks before she vanished, Kopetsky wrote on Myspace: “So life hasn’t been the greatest for me lately, over the last 9 months of my life iv dedicated my life to kylr.I made no other time for any of my friends nor my family. over those 9 months i forgot the person that I was.im trying to find that person again”.
“Kara was so young and vulnerable and, having such a young heart, she really felt like she loved him”, Beckford said. Her mother reported her missing Friday evening. Runions’ auto was discovered Saturday in south Kansas City, burned and abandoned. They, along with police are asking anyone with information about her disappearance to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-8477 (TIPS).
Michael Mansur, a spokesman for the prosecutor in Jackson County, where Kansas City is located, reiterated Tuesday that he couldn’t release details about the case because of a judge’s order.
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Yust wasn’t charged in Kopetsky’s disappearance.
