Miami link to missing Wisconsin teen ‘not credible,’ sheriff says
Less than 24 hours after a husband and wife were found murdered in their Wisconsin home, police in South Florida got a tip that the couple’s missing 13-year-old daughter Jayme Closs may have been seen more than 1,500 miles away at a Miami gas station.
On late Tuesday afternoon, Chris Fitzgerald, the sheriff of Barron County, where the killings took place, dismissed that tip as “not credible.”
The teenage girl, described as “sweet” and “shy,” isn’t considered a suspect in her parents’ murders, Fitzgerald said. Investigators also do not believe she ran away.
“I’m telling you, Jayme is missing and endangered,” he said.
Fitzgerald said Miami police did not check with Wisconsin authorities before tweeting information about the tip and reminded the public that updates would come from the sheriff ’s department.
After the bodies of James and Denise Closs were discovered in their home in Barron, about 80 miles northeast of Minneapolis, early Monday, officials said they had received a tip that their daughter Jayme Closs “may have been seen” at a Sunflex gas station in the 1100 block of Northwest 27th Avenue in Miami on Monday afternoon.
The girl was apparently inside a dark-colored Ford Explorer SUV with two bearded men. The Explorer had a Wisconsin license plate reading I6OWER, police were told.
Police in both Miami and in Wisconsin had been investigating earlier Tuesday to see if the possible Miami sighting was credible.
“We’re, of course, interviewing people, pulling [surveillance] video, but we haven’t made a determination on the validity of that tip yet,” Miami Police Chief Jorge Colina told WIOD-610 radio Tuesday morning.
Late Tuesday afternoon, Fitzgerald said Miami police did not check with Wisconsin authorities before tweeting information about the tip and reminded the public that updates would come from the sheriff ’s department.
“If we think it’s key to the case where we need the public’s help, we will disseminate that information,” he said.
A 911 call from the Closs’ family home on Monday led to the discovery of the bodies.
The call came from a cellphone inside the home, but the caller didn’t communicate with the dispatcher, Fitzgerald said. He said gunshots had been fired at the home, but he declined to say whether the couple had been shot and said his office won’t disclose how they died until after the autopsies are completed.
It’s not clear how long the couple were dead before they were discovered.
Jayme Closs was nowhere to be found.
The last time anyone saw the girl in public was on Sunday afternoon at a family gathering that she attended, Fitzgerald said.
Her grandfather, Robert Naiberg, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that nothing seemed amiss at the gathering, which was to celebrate the birthday of a grandson who is cousins with Jayme.
“She was quiet as always. She was a quiet girl,” he said.
Naiberg, 72, said his daughter, Denise Closs, and Jayme attended the party, and that his son-in-law, James Closs, was working and couldn’t make it. He described his daughter as “thoughtful person” who brought “a little gift for everybody” at the party.
Several pictures of Jayme Closs were released on the Barron County Sheriff ’s Office Facebook page.
Along with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the FBI is also involved in the search.
An Amber Alert was issued without a description of a suspect or vehicle. Deputies also searched the area around the family’s home with drones and infrared equipment and talked to Jayme’s friends and middle school classmates.
Investigators were also checking Jayme Closs’ phone and social media records.
Fitzgerald urged the public to come forward with tips.
He emphasized that suspects typically change their daily routines and if family and co-workers notice such behaviors, it might generate additional leads in the case.
“Often, someone in the community will have knowledge of a crime and may not realize it,” he said. “Individuals who commit acts of violence may display changes in their behavior and individuals around that person may observe those changes.”
“I’m telling you, Jayme is and endangered.”
Chris Fitzgerald,
Sheriff of Barron County
Information from the Associated Press supplemented this report.