Jayme Closs, a 13-year-old girl who vanished after her parents were found dead in their northwestern Wisconsin home, has been found alive, the Barron County Sheriff's Department said. / CNN
Jayme Closs, the 13-year-old girl who spent 88 days in captivity after her parents were shot dead in northwest Wisconsin, will receive US$25,000 (NZ$37,000) in reward money pledged for information leading to her safe return.
Hormel Foods, a Fortune 500 company based in Minnesota, put up the money last October,doubling the reward promised by the FBI after Closs disappeared on October 15. The girl's parents had worked for a local turkey plant operated by Jennie-O Turkey Store, which is a Hormel subsidiary.
As the community reeled from news of the disappearance, the company helped coordinate the response, including a tree-lighting ceremony before Christmas. Meanwhile, a manhunt involving local, state and federal authorities drew thousands of tips and inspired volunteers to participate in a massive ground search. Jayme's image was plastered across the state, and her visage became known nationwide.
The 13-year-old went unseen until January 10, when she appeared in a wooded area about an hour north of Barron, Wisconsin, the girl's hometown. She freed herself from a cabin in Gordon, Wisconsin, where authorities said she had been held by Jake Patterson, 21, who has been charged with first-degree murder and kidnapping.
Jayme approached a woman walking her dog. The woman rushed her to the nearest home, where seeing the young girl was "like seeing a ghost," according to the local couple that answered the door. They called 911.
Jake Patterson, 21, who has been charged with first-degree murder and kidnapping. Photo / AP
The couple said they had no interest in the reward money, raising the question: Who would reap the financial benefit from Jayme's discovery? Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald, who was at the center of the investigation, called Jayme the "hero in the case," suggesting that if the money were to be distributed, the victim herself was owed a share.
That was the conclusion reached by Jim Snee, Hormel's CEO. The FBI has not said what the agency plans to do with the $37,000 it pledged in the case.
"On behalf of the entire Jennie-O and Hormel Foods family, we are overjoyed at the news of Jayme's safe return," Snee said in a statement on Wednesday. "Her bravery and strength have truly inspired our team members around the world. Barron is an incredibly strong community and one that never lost hope. We celebrated with the community, and the world, that Jayme is home."
Steve Lykken, the president of Jennie-O Turkey Store, said he hoped that the money would go into a trust fund supporting "Jayme's needs today and in the future."
"While we are still mourning the loss of longtime family members Jim and Denise, we are so thankful for Jayme's brave escape and that she is back in Barron," Lykken said.
Jayme's aunts and other family members celebrated her safe return this month.
"It's such an overwhelming, amazing happy ending to such a horrible beginning," Lynn Closs, an aunt, told "CBS This Morning" in the family's first television interview after welcoming the 13-year-old home.
