FL - Jennifer Kesse, 24, Orlando, 24 Jan 2006 - #13

[Cyprusg]

I've followed this case since the first week and I too have always leaned toward 'it's a construction worker' theory.

It was disturbing to read the new information regarding Jennifer's car. Are we going to get anymore details from the investigation files?

Just throwing this out there as well. We know that the police, at least according to Drew Kesse, didn't interview the non-english speaking construction workers. Originally the person's height was estimated to be between 5'3 and 5'5. The average height for an American white man is 5'9 and a half. Less than 10% of white American men are shorter than 5'7. While the average height for Mexican males is around 5'6. (Not sure the percentage that would be below 5'5).

Point being that IF it's true that the person's height is between 5'3 and 5'5 there's a much greater chance the suspect is Hispanic.

But this case is so filled with unknowns that it's anyone's guess. The part that I always think about is how she was abducted from just the short walk out of her apartment to her car. No screams. No witnesses. Did she know him? Was it a construction worker asking for a ride somewhere that maybe she had a couple of conversations with previously? Then why didn't she get out of the car at any of the stop lights? Did he have a gun? Did she think she was safe until it was too late to run? Did she think it was just a robbery? So many unknowns.

 

[DD Byrd]

Discussing average heights of anyone will bring up a complete dumpster fire nowadays, although many will agree with the rationale. I cringe and feel for the Kesses, who I'd imagine read every word of these posts when they're up to it.

We're so sorry, and most mean well and want to find her...

So, just the facts. Whoever drove Jen's car back to a complex just a MILE away was either completely oblivious that a crime had been committed, or didn't care. Based on human nature, I'm thinking he/she didn't know, or else self-survival would have kicked in. Why else would you bring the car of a crime victim back so close, but not to her parking spot when it coud've been left 'clean' miles away? Were cops swarming the area on the day car was 'returned'? Or did the driver need to return to the area of the complex asap...
That saying, we don't know what surveillance was picked up at Jen's complex and not released by poilice. There is obviously more surveillance recorded, and I hope the Kesses receive answers if not justice!

 

[Truth Prevails]

That saying, we don't know what surveillance was picked up at Jen's complex and not released by poilice.

Didn't Mr. Kesse explain in the "Clearing Up Confusion" Q&A that there was no video surveillance available at Jennifer's complex at the time of her disappearance?

If I recall correctly, he said it was installed two weeks later.

Or are you suggesting there was additional video surveillance gathered, perhaps recorded by private residents, that law enforcement collected but hasn't yet forwarded to the Kesse family? Or that the Kesse family has the further video in their possession but are not releasing it to the public as it would possibly fall under the terms of settlement that same cannot be released to the public?

I believe Jennifer's parents have in their possession the entire police file, (excluding possession of any physical evidence, if any exists):

Snipped quote: The family of Jennifer Kesse has settled a lawsuit against the city of Orlando and Orlando Police in exchange for the police department's entire case file involving the missing woman's disappearance.
Jennifer Kesse Family Settles Suit to Get Police Case Files

 

[DD Byrd]

I was referring to ANY surveillance between the car drop off and her apartment. That was a major thoroughfare, and the driver walked a mile. As security cameras weren't in their infancy in 2006, my guess is the driver is on other footage, considered 'useful' or not, released or not.

The Kesses are under no obligation to reveal whatever else they have. A lot of times, the evidence is there but needs to be connected before it can be used. Pieces that fit together arbitrarily won't get a conviction. You don't want to blow your case on inadmissable evidence on the first go-round, hard as it is not to go full force for those grieving.

We also have no way to confirm that the Kesses have the entire police file, but that's another ball of wax.

 

[Myserty64]

I remember seeing the room where the Jennifer Kesse investigation files were stored. This was in a documentary and if I remember correctly was Discovery's Disappeared series. There was a lot of information filed away. A lot.
I believe it will take a long time to evaluate the contents of these files

LE got off to a rocky start with this investigation and never really recovered.
How many unsolved crimes has video of the POI walking away from the victim's car?

People saw things that day. They must have. LE and Jennifer's family need to know who saw what and when. Perhaps some answers will come in the weeks and months ahead.

 

[DD Byrd]

I agree. Especially since the footageavailable is only of the POI walking.
No certainty it's the same person who left the car.

 

[Murkywaters]

Jennifer Kesse’s family hopes recently released photos will lead to new tips in her disappearance

These are the photos which appear to show a struggle on the front hood of her car. It looks as if somebody was slammed down over the front hood of the driver side, and then onto the left. There appears to be finger drag marks as well.

This is from the OPD case files. The investigators at the scene noticed what they believed to be a struggle with someone being pushed across the front hood of the vehicle.

This photo shows what appears to be a large boot print near the gas pedal.

 

[Myserty64]

A large boot print doesn't seem to fit with the figure leaving Jennifer's car at HOTG. Having said that it is possible for a small person to have big feet. The question is how big.
As is often the case with these mysteries when one question seems to have an answer five more questions are created.

 

[BrittyB7]

This is a sexual offender transient nick-named “Chino” in Miami Dade Jail . He is 5’0” tall. All of this information can be found by clicking here:

FDLE - Sexual Offender and Predator System

I have the chills right now.

 

[Murkywaters]

This is a sexual offender transient nick-named “Chino” in Miami Dade Jail . He is 5’0” tall. All of this information can be found by clicking here:

FDLE - Sexual Offender and Predator System

I have the chills right now.

This isn't the Chino that worked at the Mosaic at Millenia

 

[thx4_medic_Babby]

I feel terrible for her and her family, and would love to see them get justice after all these years. No doubt her instincts were likely correct and she identified her killer/s in a roundabout way — ie, construction worker/s. If there was ever a case that reeked of a coverup or intentional sloppy police work, it’s Jennifer’s.

 

[BrittyB7]

This isn't the Chino that worked at the Mosaic at Millenia

O wow sounds eerily similar. How do we know that?

 

[Murkywaters]

O wow sounds eerily similar. How do we know that?

The disappearance of Jennifer Kesse This is a photo of the Chino that worked at the Mosaic at Millenia.

 

[BrittyB7]

The disappearance of Jennifer Kesse This is a photo of the Chino that worked at the Mosaic at Millenia.

Thank you!

 

[Ignorant_Bystander]

The disappearance of Jennifer Kesse This is a photo of the Chino that worked at the Mosaic at Millenia.

"Chino said Jennifer let him inside her condo. "Everything was normal." Chino also told him, "I don't have any idea what happened to her." That day, Chino took a polygraph test and he passed."
Not sure what the context of this is, but according to Drew Kesse, that was a complete lie. Jennifer would NEVER let any of them inside her condo (unless she was in there on the phone talking to her father for safety reasons). I suspect it has to be him. Yes he passed the polygraph but so what? Lots of murderers pass, then they keep on killing. Can't rely on it as a source of truth

 

[Ignorant_Bystander]

A large boot print doesn't seem to fit with the figure leaving Jennifer's car at HOTG. Having said that it is possible for a small person to have big feet. The question is how big.
As is often the case with these mysteries when one question seems to have an answer five more questions are created.

whoever was captured on the video did look to have oversized boots or shoes on, you can see them

 

[BrittyB7]

whoever was captured on the video did look to have oversized boots or shoes on, you can see them

Everybody says that this guy must’ve been tall and he has a big feet..But if you watch any forensics show if somebody was trying to cover this up obviously he would push the seat back to appear as though someone tall was driving and leave NO evidence other evidence inside the thoroughly wiped-down car..besides a very large shoe print? I feel as though this was purposely done to try to detract attention from himself. Then we view the camera footage and we see this short guy with ridiculously sized clown shows on. I also think he wore the paint suit (bc it was normal to be seen wearing this there, as this building was under construction) but also as a cover-up to try to leave as little evidence as possible when moving the car.

 

[BrittyB7]

Everything points to Chino. We don’t know his real name?

 

[Markybug]

"Chino said Jennifer let him inside her condo. "Everything was normal." Chino also told him, "I don't have any idea what happened to her." That day, Chino took a polygraph test and he passed."
Not sure what the context of this is, but according to Drew Kesse, that was a complete lie. Jennifer would NEVER let any of them inside her condo (unless she was in there on the phone talking to her father for safety reasons). I suspect it has to be him. Yes he passed the polygraph but so what? Lots of murderers pass, then they keep on killing. Can't rely on it as a source of truth

chino said that jenn told him to lock up her apartment. Her dad says this is a lie as he was on the other end of the phone ( she would be on her mobile to someone whilst standing in her open doorway, when workers were in her apartment doing repairs etc) and she would absolutely never trust them to lock up themselves! I believe she had to come away from work to do this at times ?


Don’t know why a workmen would lie about this tho ?

 

[Georgia8]

Caveat: I have limited knowledge of the case just most of the Unconcluded podcast and and a limited amount of W.S. ....but so far....

1. The car abduction theory is to some extent in contradiction to the condo worker theory. If there was an empty unit next to Jennifer's and other empty units to which workers had keys, then why take the enormous risk of abducting her so publicly? If these people wished harm on Jennifer they had many safer options that would give them plenty of time to harm her in privacy.

2. I would strongly caution against the idea that the people close to Jennifer know everything about Jennifer, every one of her habits, every one of her thoughts even every secret of her life assuming she had secrets. She may have held things back even out of concern for alarming or worrying them and maybe in conversations there were other things she wanted to talk about and didn't want the conversation to focus just on her anxieties. This inevitably happens when the family is placed in the role of needing to be just advocates for the case... an extreme example is Amy Bradley. I mean to cast no aspersion here.

3. I say this because what worries me so far is the evidence (assuming they are not exaggerating) of the person who claims that a very distracted and out of character Jennifer tried to rent an apt. from her. Now going by her voice only I slightly distrust the part where she says she went back and checked the form that had been filled out and it had Jennifer's name i.e. Jennifer Kresse in full............... I will have to listen again but she may be stretching the truth at the point. If not, if this really happened then it is very very strange. What could it mean? What is Jennifer looking outside at what is she worried about? And why in the heck is she looking for an apt. if she has just bought a condo? Also note that we know that Jennifer expressed anxiety at her condo about the workers to her family and it appears on multiple occasions. Yet one other woman on the podcast who socialized with Chino and Ben says she was simply cautious but not afraid of them at all...she only found it strange when they left their jobs suddenly. Is there any chance Jennifer had a vague experience of being stalked and was attributing it to people around her as she tried to make sense of it and also was afraid of sharing it for fear of sounding a bit crazy?

4. The video/photo evidence: can we tell the race of the person from it? The podcast mentions that the 'white' colour of clothing is not necessarily accurate since when tested, everything would look white due to the incessant copying over of the tape. Does this extend to skin colour? (though to me the person looks white and not Hispanic or Black and again I am not talking skin colour if we can't tell cause of the tape. But could they be say black? (Thinking of the jewellery store worker's story on Inconcluded who says she saw a run down beleaguered Jennifer with a nicely dressed black (she says very dark skinned) male with attractive well kempt dreadlocks.

5. There is some contradiction between the bootprint evidence, the FBI estimate of the size of the person on the camera. There IS a disturbing similarity between the forward lean in the profile photo of Chino on WS and the camera footage - also the way the arms hang. Probably less so the face. But on the other hand I agree with some others the person on the tape looks younger in appearance and gait and walking speed than I take it the condo workers to have been.

6. There is a bit of a match between the character of the Jennifer who is distracted and fearful and bizarrely trying to rent an apartment near her condo, the Jennifer who seems, to me, to be unusually vigilant in her own condo unit needing to have her Dad on the phone if there was a worker in the unit and the more degraded Jennifer in the jewellery shop. No I am not believing those two sitings necessarily.

7. I would like to know how Jennifer was with her boyfriend on her trip? Was there the same need for vigilance in St. Croix or was she was relaxed? If he really examines his experience of Jennifer on the trip and in the last few months before her disappearance was there anything and I mean anything that could give him pause?