Jake Patterson decided to abduct 13-year-old Jayme Closs after seeing her get on the school bus at her Wisconsin home one morning in October 2018 — and then he held her captive for about three months.
Barron County Sheriff’s DepartmentJayme Closs was just 13 years old when she was kidnapped by Jake Patterson — and escaped from his clutches after 88 days in captivity.
In the early morning hours of Oct. 15, 2018, the peaceful life of 13-year-old Jayme Closs changed forever. A man named Jake Patterson broke into her home in Barron, Wisconsin, murdered her parents, and stuffed her into the trunk of his car.
Patterson drove Jayme to his cabin 70 miles away in the small town of Gordon. There, the 21-year-old held the teen girl captive for nearly three months, forcing her to hide under his twin-sized bed when he had guests over and threatening to harm her if she tried to escape.
Then, on Jan. 10, 2019, Jayme saw her chance. When Patterson left the house that day, Jayme slipped out from beneath the bed and ran out into the snowy Wisconsin winter wearing Patterson’s too-big shoes and no coat. She wandered around until she saw a woman walking her dog and begged her for help.
After 88 days in captivity, Jayme Closs’ nightmare was over. Using information the teen provided, investigators were quickly able to track Patterson down, and he was sentenced to life in prison for his disturbing crimes.
The Abduction Of Jayme Closs And The Murder Of Her Parents
When Jake Thomas Patterson rolled into the Closs family’s driveway just before 1 a.m. on Oct. 15, 2018, he knew he wouldn’t be leaving alone. About two weeks earlier, he was waiting behind a school bus on his way to work when he spotted 13-year-old Jayme Closs climbing on board. According to a 2019 report in The New York Times, Patterson later admitted to investigators that he “knew that was the girl he was going to take.”
Barron County Clerk of CourtJayme Closs’ parents, James and Denise Closs, were brutally murdered in front of her the night she was abducted.
Over the next few days, he headed to Jayme’s house twice, but he was frightened away by cars in the driveway or people moving inside. However, when Patterson arrived for the third time on Oct. 15, he was determined to take Jayme with him. Jayme’s father, James Closs, went to the front door to investigate after the family dog began barking. Patterson fired his shotgun through a window, fatally striking the man.
He then broke into the house and busted down the door of the bathroom, where Jayme and her mother, Denise, were hiding. Denise tried to call 911, but she wasn’t able to say a word to the dispatcher before Patterson entered. He forced Denise to put tape on Jayme’s mouth — and then shot the woman right in front of her young daughter.
Public DomainJake Patterson broke into the Closs family’s home in the early morning hours of Oct. 15, 2018, to kill James and Denise Closs and kidnap Jayme.
As Patterson carried a terrified Jayme Closs out of her home, he almost slipped in a pool of blood. He placed the teen in his trunk and drove away. Patterson was inside the house for just four minutes.
Because the 911 dispatcher had heard screams in the background of Denise’s phone call, they sent officers to the Closs residence. The police later realized they had passed Patterson’s car — with Jayme tied up in the trunk — on the way to the grisly scene. Upon arriving at the home, investigators quickly determined that Jayme was not a suspect in the murders, and they issued an Amber Alert.
However, it would be nearly three months before there was any sign of Jayme Closs.
Jayme Closs’ 88 Days In The Captivity Of Jake Patterson
After murdering James and Denise Closs and kidnapping Jayme, Jake Patterson drove the girl to his house in Gordon, Wisconsin, about 70 miles away. There, he burned her clothes and threatened to kill her if she made any noise. According to a 2019 report by the Associated Press, Patterson later told the police that Jayme quickly learned he would get angry over small things and cooperated with him so he wouldn’t harm her.
Patterson stated, “I would say that, you know you have it really good here, I’m treating you good, and she’d be like yeah okay… I was like you could have it a lot worse here.”
Despite meticulously planning his abduction of Jayme, going as far as shaving his head to prevent leaving his DNA behind, Patterson reportedly didn’t think about what he would do once he had Jayme. When Patterson’s father or friends came to his house, he forced her to hide beneath his twin-sized bed, barricading the openings with storage totes weighed down by barbells so she couldn’t push her way out.
Renee Jones Schneider/Minneapolis Star Tribune/ZUMA Wire/Alamy Live NewsThe small space where Jake Patterson kept Jayme Closs concealed beneath his twin-sized bed.
He also made her stay under the bed when he left the house, sometimes leaving her without food, water, or access to a bathroom for 12 hours at a time. As time went on, however, Patterson began to trust Jayme. They watched television, played board games, and cooked together, and he even took her on walks through his property.
This continued for almost three months, but on Jan. 10, 2019, Jayme decided she’d had enough. When Jake Patterson left the home that day, she pushed her way out from beneath his bed, slipped on his shoes, and ventured into the snow outside wearing only her pajamas.
Soon, Jayme Closs spotted Jeanne Nutter walking her dog in the area — and she knew she was safe at last.
How Jake Patterson Finally Faced Justice For His Crimes
“I’m lost, and I don’t know where I am, and I need help,” Jayme told Nutter as she approached. Nutter initially thought the young girl might be a run-away — but when Jayme said her name, Nutter was stunned.
Nutter rushed to a nearby house and pounded on the door, shouting, “This is Jayme Closs! Call 911!”
Peter Kasinkas, the owner of that house, told the Associated Press at the time, “I honestly still think I’m dreaming right now. It was like I was seeing a ghost. My jaw just went to the floor.”
As the police headed to Jayme’s location, Patterson arrived home to find the girl gone. He jumped back into his car to search for her — and drove right past the deputy who was driving Jayme from Kasinkas’ home to the hospital. The officer alerted his colleagues, who tracked Patterson down and pulled him over. He immediately said, “I did it.”
Barron County Sheriff’s DepartmentJake Patterson, the 21-year-old man who decided to kidnap Jayme Closs after seeing her get on the school bus one morning in October 2018.
Patterson ultimately pleaded guilty to two counts of murder and the abduction of Jayme Closs. He received two life sentences plus an additional 40 years for the kidnapping.
During Patterson’s sentencing, Jayme’s attorney read a statement from the teen: “He thought he could own me but he was wrong. I was smarter. I was brave and he was not… He thought he could make me like him, but he was wrong.”
After her daring escape, Jayme went to live with her aunt and was reunited with her beloved dog, Molly. Despite her traumatic experience, she was able to find joy in life by dancing and rejoining some of her favorite school activities.
On the one-year anniversary of her abduction, Jayme’s attorney stated that she was “moving forward courageously and reclaiming her life. Her incredible spirit and strength continues to inspire everyone around her.”
After reading about Jayme Closs and her brave escape from her kidnapper, learn about the 1972 abduction of seven-year-old Steven Stayner. Then, discover how Elisabeth Fritzl escaped from her own father’s basement after 24 years in captivity.
