Hey. How many people here have read the books about Jacob Wetterling? Also how many here have read the warrants that were released since last September since the confession?
I wanted to say that Danny Heinrich shouldn't have been able to get very far after abducting Jacob. Police all over Stearns county had suspected that he was the perpetrator in the Jared Schriel assault and abduction and they had already investigated him for this crime with or without Mr. Heinrich's knowledge. They had looked at his car when he was at work, had him in a photo lineup for Jared to look at, and had already been researching the Paynesville cases that the police were suspecting he was involved in. Even if they couldn't prove he committed these crimes, they were suspecting him. Fast forward nine months when Jacob Wetterling is abducted in October of 1989. Several of the investigators at the scene of the abduction at already known Heinrich and investigated him for Jared Schriel's assault.
When Jacob was abducted, why didn't they send someone to look for Heinrich who only lived in Paynesville 20 miles away. They could have intercepted him while Jacob was still alive. Heinrich saw a police car when he was in the field sexually assaulting Jacob and then he panicked and killed him out of fear of being caught. Whoever was driving that police car should have been looking for Heinrich. Why didn't they go over to his house? How was Heinrich able to go bury Jacob's body that night? Didn't anybody make any connections? They didn't even interview Heinrich until December after interviewing over 100 other potential suspects. Didn't anybody make any connections in law enforcement? How come the Paynesville victims and Jared Schriel himself were worried that Jacob's abductor was their perpetrator as well? They were going to law enforcement with this information.
You're absolutely correct, the warrants are very telling. The Duane Hart warrant (attached) is especially remarkable because it shows that LE was simply following social media and news media down same old rabbit holes they had fallen in from the beginning - Delbert Huber, Duane Hart, etc. (Ever notice the dominance of DH's in this case?). What's even more laughable is their assertion that LE was not "listening" to them. When you read the warrant, it specifically refers to media attention to the Paynesville cases, which were used to propel Duane Hart as the perp, agains conventional wisdom. Notably, all those social media posts about Delbert Huber and Duane Hart disappeared.
Ironically, social media, news media, and the JWRC have admonished the Paynesville Police Department. In reality, the Paynesville police consistently led the way in pointing the finger at Heinrich. This is documented several times in public documents. Time after time, SCSO pushed it aside.
My big question about the Hart warrant, is did BCA agent McDonald lie when he said he listened to a phone call during which Duane Hart asked to have his items in storage move after being questioned by McDonald and Jensen? First of all, knowing that Hart was not the perp, why would he be concerned about being questioned to the point he would want his stuff moved? Second - he didn't have a pot to piss in when he was a free man - what could he possibly have worth keeping for 25 years, one who would be minding it?
There is a lot in this case that the media has overlooked, instead focusing on a lot of "garbage" non-news kinds of things.