There are reports that remains were recently found that could be those of Jacob Wetterling.
Advertisement
Authorities recovered unidentified remains this week after Danny Heinrich, who is a suspect in the disappearance of Jacob Wetterling, agreed to cooperate and provide information, according to a report from KSTP. Searchers have been at an undisclosed site for the last few days.
Those sources told KSTP federal and state authorities found remains they believe could belong to Jacob Wetterling, who was 11 when he was kidnapped at gunpoint by a man wearing a mask in October 1989 near his home in St. Joseph.
He was taken into custody in October, which is when the U.S. Attorney’s Office discussed his possible connection to the Wetterling case – though authorities emphasized he is not a suspect, and he has denied any involvement.
The FBI says a similar case happened in January of 1989, when 12-year-old Jared Scheierl was sexually assaulted in nearby Cold Spring. No charges can be filed in that case, however, as the statute of limitations has passed.
In October 2015, Heinrich was arrested and charged with five counts of possessing and receiving child pornography.
As a result, BCA and federal investigators said they’re looking at several abductions around the Paynesville area, which is where Heinrich lived at the time. Shoe prints found also matched shoes owned by Heinrich.
Authorities arrested 52-year-old Danny Heinrich of Annandale last fall, and declared him a “person of interest” in the Wetterling abduction. Sources say the Federal Bureau of Investigation took Heinrich out of jail at least twice this week.
Wetterling disappeared in October of 1989 after he was on a bike ride home from a convenience store.
In that case, the driver told the boy after releasing him “not to look back or he would be shot”, according to court documents.
As they headed home, a masked man with a gun appeared on the remote dirt road leading to the Wetterling house, told the boys to lie face down in a nearby ditch and asked each his age.
Advertisement
Jacob was never found despite a massive search. If you know anything about this man, his ties to St. Joseph in 1989 and his victimization of children or since, please call the Stearns County Sheriff’s Department at 320-259-3700 or 320-656-6625.
