The kidnapping of middle-schooler Jayme Closs was an event that occurred on Monday, October 15, 2018 in Barron, Wisconsin. Closs was abducted from her family’s home at around 1:00 am by a man who forced his way in and shot both her mother and father.

    Jake Patterson, the man who kidnapped Closs, first spotted the 13-year-old girl at her school bus stop. Patterson claims he knew from the moment he saw her that “she was the girl he was going to take.” Patterson’s abduction of Closs was an elaborate and gruesome task.

    Residents and investigators spent weeks searching for Closs and were thrilled when she was able to escape from her captor. Closs reflected on her time spent at Patterson’s cabin where she was forced to hide under his twin-sized bed without food or water for hours at a time.

    One day when Patterson left the house, Closs was able to free herself and run to a nearby road and find help.

    Jayme’s escape was incredible considering the amount of control Patterson had over her. Now, Jayme lives with her aunt as she tries to recover from this life-altering event.