NE NE - Jason Jolkowski, 19, Omaha, 13 June 2001 - #2

[MatthewTyler]

That being said, would you believe I'm actually very surprised that the police never knocked on my door and talked to my son or I? We have talked about how slow the investigation started, but wouldn't you talk to all the neighbors? I did go down and talk to the Jolkowski's when I found out, but I found out a week after the fact or more.

Drove by the old place a couple Sunday's ago. They are working on the sewers again. My over landscaped yard has been cleared with a big privacy fence put in place of the popular trees I had.

I'm not so much surprised that the police didn't ask you questions, but more so that Kelly didn't. I'm sure that Jason's parents started canvassing neighbors long before the 10 days it took LE, so one would think she would have asked you seeing as you're next to their driveway. I would love to know which neighbor's house got searched and why. Seems like that would be something other neighbors would gossip about, but I guess you never heard anything? I know that you were technically the next block over, but did you know any of these neighbors... or did you know if they were close with each other?

 

[studebkr]

...but did you know any of these neighbors... or did you know if they were close with each other?

Jolkowski's were the only ones I knew on that street, and barely knew them. My parents knew them better because they were all members of the St. Vincent De Paul Society, though they worked out of different parishes. It was my mom that first told me of the vanishing.

I worked with Ken Jolkowski at SITEL. He was much more outgoing than Jim, but didn't tell me anything we haven't discussed here. He had a son that looked a lot like Jason going to school at UNL. A lot of the Jason sightings in Lincoln turned out to be his son instead.

There was a retired African American railroad worker that lived across from Jolkowski's driveway. I'm pretty sure it was him who saw Jason put out the trash. He was always working in his yard. I remember talking to him about the situation, but he didn't know any more than that.

The house East of him and across the street to the North of me was a small time drug dealer. Cars came and went day and night. There was a lot of that North of there all the way to the park. The houses South of Pinkney Street were all nicer, and pretty much owned, not rented.

 

[MatthewTyler]

The houses South of Pinkney Street were all nicer, and pretty much owned, not rented.

This has honestly been a big problem that has made any research about this impossible. I looked up the owners from pretty much every house between Jason's and the school and MANY of them are rented out. There's basically no way to know who was renting these homes at the time. Any creep could have been renting out a home, harmed Jason, and then bounced out of town on a short terms notice.

 

[studebkr]

Omaha doesn't forget...

Jason Jolkowski still missing 17 years later

17-years

 

[MatthewTyler]

Omaha doesn't forget...

Jason Jolkowski still missing 17 years later

17-years

18 years now, as that article was from 2018. I give Omaha news credit, they've been very consistent with reporting his case on the anniversary each year. I always look at Facebook posts related to it to see if I learn anything new from people who may comment on them. One never knows when the perp may want to relive that day

 

[studebkr]

18 years now, as that article was from 2018.

I'm sorry. I grabbed that from a friends FB post today. She did not know Jason, but Kelly helped her group in another missing person case for someone named Jennifer. My friend is from the Denver area, and she did not give me a last name. She just wanted to mark the day.

 

[dotr]

Never Forget Me
4 hrs ·
Please share

Thursday, June 13h marks 18 years since I last saw my son, Jason Jolkowski. He was age 19 at the time, and was last seen at our home taking in the garbage cans. He was then to walk to Benson High School, 7 blocks away, to be picked up by a co-worker and given a ride to an earlier work shift at Fazoli’s. It appears he never made it to the school.

There are no leads on this mysterious and frustrating 18 year case. We continue to hope for answers and that Jason won’t be forgotten.

Jason is a nice person. No one could have disliked him or purposely wanted to harm him. He would hold doors open for little old ladies and help handicapped students get to class and carry their books. He was a lector at our local parish and was moving toward his goal of getting back into radio broadcasting. He laughed at everyone’s bad jokes and would never tell you just how bad the jokes were. I miss him, his laughter, and attitude toward life.

This poster provided several phone numbers that can be called with tips. It also shows an age-progression photo of what Jason might look like today. Please share it as you never know when it will reach someone who knows something and is willing to tell.

http://www.missingkids.com/poster/NCMC/992083/1/screen

Thank you.
Kelly Murphy, Jason’s Mother

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10161957645985578&id=875215577


About this website
missingkids.org
Have you seen this child? JASON JOLKOWSKI
Missing From: OMAHA, NE. Missing Date: Jun 13, 2001 12:00:00 AM.…
105

 

[dotr]

Have you seen this child? JASON JOLKOWSKI

• NCMEC: 992083

Jason Jolkowski

• • Missing Since
  • Jun 13, 2001
• • Missing From
  • Omaha, NE
• • DOB
  • Jun 24, 1981
• • Age Now
  • 37
• • Sex
  • Male
• • Race
  • White
• • Hair Color
  • Brown
• • Eye Color
  • Brown
• • Height
  • 6'1"
• • Weight
  • 165 lbs

Age Progressed

Jason went missing when he was 19 years old. His photo is shown age progressed to 36 years. Jason was last seen leaving his home to walk to Benson High School, where he was supposed to meet a coworker for a ride to work. He never arrived at the school and has not been heard from since. Jason's nickname is J.J.

 

[MatthewTyler]

Jason is a nice person. No one could have disliked him or purposely wanted to harm him. He would hold doors open for little old ladies and help handicapped students get to class and carry their books. He was a lector at our local parish and was moving toward his goal of getting back into radio broadcasting. He laughed at everyone’s bad jokes and would never tell you just how bad the jokes were. I miss him, his laughter, and attitude toward life.

Unfortunately it sounds like Kelly underestimates the cruelty of others. Someone could be the nicest person in the world, and there will still be a sick b*stard that will kill them just because.

 

[Elle*Bee]

The Project Jason website doesn’t seem be active. Is there another site established by the family where I can learn more?

 

[dotr]

Just noticed this newly started thread and was reminded of Jason's case..
OH - Man assaulted in Springfield, thrown in trash truck and found at waste site

 

[jinger]

this case HAUNTS me. I think especially because there is such little information available to the public. I see his mom moved to Washington and split from the dad. I hope she is doing okay. I lean towards it being a neighbor who lured him in.

 

[black27dog]

What confuses me also is how Project Jason after so many years was just closed down without anyone being told. And at the very least why wasn’t the website left up for reference anyone since it had so much data? Does anyone know?

 

[MatthewTyler]

What confuses me also is how Project Jason after so many years was just closed down without anyone being told. And at the very least why wasn’t the website left up for reference anyone since it had so much data? Does anyone know?

They still have a decent amount of info on the Charley Project website. My guess is that Kelly might not have the time to devote herself to Project Jason anymore, so instead of doing anything half-heartedly, just retire the organization

 

[black27dog]

I understand if that was the case but I think it should have been announced they were closing but leave the website up for reference. To go through everything they did to start something so big then drop it I find surprising.

And I don’t quite get either how no one saw anything when Jason disappeared. I mean nothing no mention of a car, anything strange that day.

 

[MatthewTyler]

And I don’t quite get either how no one saw anything when Jason disappeared. I mean nothing no mention of a car, anything strange that day.

The police waited 10 days to start questioning potential witnesses, so even if they did see something they would either not remember or be unsure of what day it was they saw it. That's what's so infuriating about this case: too much time was lost at the beginning

 

[Savemecastiel]

Bump

 

[retrometro]

I've long been troubled by this case. I'm almost exactly the same age as Jason and remember some of the news coverage after he disappeared. I really appreciate the context that Studebkr provides about the neighborhood at the time.

There are two things I would add to the discussion that haven't been said already (all my own opinion, based on available evidence):

1. Nearly all reports say that Jason was 6'1" and 165 pounds at the time of his disappearance. I assume that means he looked lean in build. Speaking as another male who was about the same height/weight in 2001, I find it believable that someone who was stronger could have physically overpowered him by surprise, especially if Jason wasn't athletic.
   
   
2. I also wonder what sort of interaction Jason would have had with people on his walk. Would he have willingly gone into a stranger's house to help them with something? Given that most use here didn't know him personally, we can only speculate about that. But a couple of contextual details stand out to me. First, Kelly Jolkowski said an interview at some point in the past that she doesn't think Jason would have willingly gotten into a car with a stranger. Second, based on what Studbkr has said about the neighborhood, it seems likely that Jason knew the area had rough patches. As a child of the 1980s, he would have grown up in the era when "stranger danger" was taught in elementary schools. So if he was in fact lured into a house or car, whoever lured him was someone who seemed trustworthy or convincing.

Taken together, these factors lead me to believe that if Jason was in fact abducted, it was by someone he already knew or at least visually recognized as a familiar face, perhaps from his church or from walking the same route as a high school student. If it was a complete stranger, I'm guessing it was under duress (that is, they pulled a gun or knife on him and he couldn't get away fast enough).

If it wasn't an abduction, I would rank the accidental fall scenario a distant second in terms of possibilities. It sort of works from the standpoint Occam's Razor: he falls somewhere near a sewer or construction site and succumbs to his injuries. That's all. The one major flaw with this scenario is why a body never turned up when there were only a limited number of places in the neighborhood where it could have happened.

I don't think the other scenarios are very likely, but they can't be completely ruled out either. I do hope that the family gets some closure at some point.

 

[JohHall1001]

I wonder if police ever searched any abandoned barns or farmhouses around the outskirts of the Omaha area. Seems like there would be a bunch of those out in the countrysides. Maybe someone lured him into a car and drove him out to one and harmed him/left his body out there. Couldn't be more than a 20-30 minute drive from his neighborhood.

 

[MatthewTyler]

I wonder if police ever searched any abandoned barns or farmhouses around the outskirts of the Omaha area. Seems like there would be a bunch of those out in the countrysides. Maybe someone lured him into a car and drove him out to one and harmed him/left his body out there. Couldn't be more than a 20-30 minute drive from his neighborhood.

There was a post on one of the Reddit threads about this case from a childhood friend of Jason's, and she mentioned having a vivid dream once about an old barn out in the country. I don't remember the exact details of it, but she was fairly convinced it had something to do with where he was. I don't put a whole lot of faith in dreams or psychics or anything like that but your post made me think of that