NE NE - Jason Jolkowski, 19, Omaha, 13 Jun 2001 - #3

[randomgetawaycar]

If I were in Jason's shoes, no matter how much I didn't like how my life was going at the time, I wouldn't have chosen that moment to run away. Jason was someone who was meticulous enough to wear his Cubs shirt on a hot summer's day and carry his Fazioli's shirt so that it wouldn't get dirty. He had already given his notice and was going to leave Fazioli's. Jason had a conscientious personality. It doesn't sound like he lived a sheltered life, so he would have known life outside of his community could be rough. Jason had dreams (sports broadcasting) and he was on his way to fulfilling them. I can't see him running away without taking all of his money and ID to somewhere like LA/NYC for a mere chance in a big city.

 

[Alleykins]

Zebb Quinn had a crappy friend and put his faith in the wrong people. I don't know, just how I feel about Jason's case. I'm not really trying to convince people to believe this theory, just putting in my two cents. He wasn't wearing his Fazoli's shirt at the time so I think he ditched it. Once he got to a larger city, I could believe that there was no credible sighting of him. Brown hair, brown eyes, thin build and 6'1... that sounds like every 5th person in NYC. He doesn't have any distinguishing characteristics. But again, everyone has their own ideas and unfortunately none of them could be proven or disproven.

I just want you to know that I, personally, don't discount your theory. I don't subscribe to it, but I don't dismiss it, either. Stranger things have happened, and we know so little. People do things on a whim, out of the blue, for reasons only known to them, all the time. They can do things the same way a million times, and then get a hair across their bum, and then do it differently the millionth and one time. Sometimes, it has dire consequences. Other times, it goes unnoticed. So you are absolutely right. Everyone has their own ideas (I will add, based on their interpretation of the data) about Jason's case, and unfortunately none of them can be proven or disproved at this point in time.

 

[studebkr]

Hi guys. I'd stepped away from here for a while. I think my email was flagging my notices as spam, and I just sort of forgot to check in! That, and working from home, I find other ways to goof off. ;-)

It dawned on me the other day, that we are approaching the 20th anniversary of Jason's disappearance. I do not remember the exact date, but I believe it was in June.

We also have another missing boy in the Omaha area. Younger, autistic. Can use all of your prayers at this point in time. Ryan Larsen search continues: Crews working in closed-off Papillion recreation area

I would expect to see something on the news around here soon about Jason's anniversary. If there is a local vigil, I may go. Jim is still in Omaha, Kelly moved away but might come back for such a thing.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Interesting discussion.
I disagree it would be possible for every person in the neighborhood, even just those he was acquainted with, to be truly cleared by LE. That wouldn't be possible, as surely some people in the neighborhood, or in his circle, were home alone at the time he went missing. JMO.

 

[studebkr]

Interesting discussion.
I disagree it would be possible for every person in the neighborhood, even just those he was acquainted with, to be truly cleared by LE. That wouldn't be possible, as surely some people in the neighborhood, or in his circle, were home alone at the time he went missing. JMO.

That's how I ended up on this chat board, and I was not offended. One of your members reached out to me with questions, because I was the owner of the house behind the Jolkowski's. If the police never questioned me or my son as to what we might have saw, then they did not do their job. Who else did they not talk to that they should have?

As far as I'm concerned. My son and I, as well as the Jolkowski's are all suspects. Not that I suspect any of those people, the police should. It took me 10 days to hear about what happened at first, because it didn't make the news. There was no "amber alert". My mother knew the Jolkowski's from their work at St Vincent De Paul, and called me to ask what I knew. I didn't know about it. They were quiet people. Other than walking the dog, my son and I didn't get around much either.

About a week after that, members of the parish and neighborhood had signs and yellow ribbons plastered everywhere. I think everyone was in shock at first. People don't just vanish in North Omaha.

 

[Alleykins]

@studebkr
Being from the local area, what do you believe is the most likely scenario as to what happened to Jason? Was it a relatively safe neighborhood? Thank you, and welcome aboard.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

That's how I ended up on this chat board, and I was not offended. One of your members reached out to me with questions, because I was the owner of the house behind the Jolkowski's. If the police never questioned me or my son as to what we might have saw, then they did not do their job. Who else did they not talk to that they should have?

As far as I'm concerned. My son and I, as well as the Jolkowski's are all suspects. Not that I suspect any of those people, the police should. It took me 10 days to hear about what happened at first, because it didn't make the news. There was no "amber alert". My mother knew the Jolkowski's from their work at St Vincent De Paul, and called me to ask what I knew. I didn't know about it. They were quiet people. Other than walking the dog, my son and I didn't get around much either.

About a week after that, members of the parish and neighborhood had signs and yellow ribbons plastered everywhere. I think everyone was in shock at first. People don't just vanish in North Omaha.

Wow, thanks for your response. It's surprising to me.

 

[studebkr]

@studebkr
Being from the local area, what do you believe is the most likely scenario as to what happened to Jason? Was it a relatively safe neighborhood? Thank you, and welcome aboard.

My house was built about 1910 or so. Brick with a slate roof. The Jolkowski's was a newer frame style. It was an older mixed race neighborhood though it had an interesting caveat. The Holy Name parish had this idea, that if it could remodel its houses and offer low cost housing to young people, it might keep the high school and parish out of debt. A family named the Vaughns took this effort on. It worked for many years, and there are many well kept houses in the neighborhood because of it. It is an Oasis in the middle of more blighted, gang infested areas. It is not uncommon to hear about a gang related shooting six blocks from there, but I felt pretty safe there.

I have a lot of posts in sections #2 and #3 about theories I've had. The truth is, its something I never would have thought could happen. Jason and his family are/were nice people. It was a shock. My son was turning 16 and I bought him a car right away because of it.

I don't understand why Jason had his coworker meet him at the high school. I guess I forget that nobody used GPS then, but still... If he ran, it was planned, because he didn't access his phone, bank account or pick up his last pay check. If it was planned, why didn't he wait until he got his car back from the shop? (we had a big hail storm in May and he was having that fixed)

Jason had a lot of jobs going on. He was closing down his job at Fazoli's. He had the DJ job at community college, and his uncle helped him get a job at SITEL where I worked, though he never started. I think it was one of the regular telemarketing jobs.

Some of the supposed sightings of Jason afterward were that uncle's son who was living in Lincoln at the time going to school. They looked a lot a like.

I've had all the same theories that you all have had, but how can someone vanish without leaving any evidence? None. It just blows my mind every time I think about it.

 

[Alleykins]

Thank you for the insight.

 

[randomgetawaycar]

I'm hoping for a breakthrough as we near the 20th anniversary of Jason's disappearance.

 

[MatthewTyler]

I'm hoping for a breakthrough as we near the 20th anniversary of Jason's disappearance.

It would be nice if the police maybe did a re-canvass of the neighborhood and spoke again with neighbors who lived there at the time and still live there now. But I reckon that's asking for too much.

 

[Alleykins]

It would be nice if the police maybe did a re-canvass of the neighborhood and spoke again with neighbors who lived there at the time and still live there now. But I reckon that's asking for too much.

TBH, I would hope law enforcement would have been doing something like this periodically all along. I get resources are scarce, but even just one shift a year, walking around the neighborhood, knocking on doors, speaking to folks in their front yards, or walking their dogs. Something.

 

[dotr]

TBH, I would hope law enforcement would have been doing something like this periodically all along. I get resources are scarce, but even just one shift a year, walking around the neighborhood, knocking on doors, speaking to folks in their front yards, or walking their dogs. Something.

Wondering if there is an appropriate spot near Jason's home to put a billboard with his pic and asking for information.
Maybe there are elderly people who still live in the neighborhood but do not generally use a computer and whose memories might be tweaked seeing Jason's face in a prominent spot?

 

[Andreee]

It would be nice if the police maybe did a re-canvass of the neighborhood and spoke again with neighbors who lived there at the time and still live there now. But I reckon that's asking for too much.

This has been mentioned before, but there were sex offenders living on the block of and enroute to the school that Jason was heading to. I know that LE would've looked into all of them, but I just think that is where the answer lies in this case, and perhaps clues in their former or still lived in properties/homes there. I would like to know what the family themselves thinks happened to Jason as well.

 

[Gilderoy Lockhart]

I think about Jason's disappearance a lot. It's definitely the most mysterious missing person's case IMO. It's just really unsettling.

Something I haven't seen mentioned is when exactly JJ left home that day. I've seen 10:45, but is that accurate? In the CNN article MatthewTyler linked recently, it states 10:15. The only ones who might know for sure are JJ's brother and the neighbor who saw Jason bringing the trash cans in. Both may not even be entirely sure and were guessing. Maybe it was closer to 10:30? I haven't ever read anywhere when Jason's shift started and when he supposed to meet his co-worker. It seems agreed upon that it was 11:00.

I don't think it's strange at all that Jason decided to just meet his co-worker at the school cause he had trouble giving directions or perhaps it was just kinda confusing to someone who wasn't aware of the area. I do something similar. Not entirely the same, but explaining the guest parking in my complex and the general area is a bit tedious for someone who isn't familiar with my neighborhood. It's simply easier for me to let guests know that I'll come down when they arrive and direct them to the guest parking area.

I don't think there's any chance JJ left on his own accord. There's a poster who knew him on Reddit and her account is exactly how his folks refer to him. She too says there's a 0% chance he decided to run away. I think some kind of freak accident where he fell into a gutter or something is almost as likely as an abduction. Perhaps he was trying to help a stuck animal or something. If he was abducted, the recent posts you folks have made discussing someone that Jason was familiar with but that his parents didn't know is on the right track IMO.

I was in Omaha that day, strangely enough. I was in town for the College World Series, which was going on at the time, and was headed home that morning. I was likely flying over whatever happened to Jason as I recall my flight was a late morning one.

If I could solve any unsolved missing persons case, it would be Jason Jolkowski. Whatever happened to him was something extraordinary and awful.

 

[MatthewTyler]

I think some kind of freak accident where he fell into a gutter or something is almost as likely as an abduction. Perhaps he was trying to help a stuck animal or something

People on Reddit have theorized this type of situation before, but it just doesn't seem likely. What crevice could he have gotten wedged in on such a short walk which has caused him to be obscured for 20 years? Studebkr mentioned that there was possibly the sewer renovation project happening around this same time, but unless he fell down an open hole and ended up deep in the ground, surely he would have been found. Some people have suggested he fell down an open manhole, but I assume sewer systems get checked every now and again for construction purposes.

 

[Alleykins]

People on Reddit have theorized this type of situation before, but it just doesn't seem likely. What crevice could he have gotten wedged in on such a short walk which has caused him to be obscured for 20 years? Studebkr mentioned that there was possibly the sewer renovation project happening around this same time, but unless he fell down an open hole and ended up deep in the ground, surely he would have been found. Some people have suggested he fell down an open manhole, but I assume sewer systems get checked every now and again for construction purposes.

I'd like to add: in most places, manholes also contain utilities, like phone cables. If he fell down an open manhole, chances are someone has been down in there in the past 20 for the local phone or electric company, if not the water and sewer departments, and he would have been found.
But the chances of him falling into an open manhole is quite slim. Whenever someone is working in a manhole, usually it's not left unattended, and there are rules and regulations in place for safety reasons. Dangerous gasses can build up, and there's a chance of CO2 poisoning, and lead poisoning, if it's a very old one.
That's why, when you pass one being worked on you'll see two or three utility workers looking like they're standing around doing nothing. What they're actually doing is ensuring the safety of the person down in the manhole. (former phone company employee).

 

[Andreee]

People on Reddit have theorized this type of situation before, but it just doesn't seem likely. What crevice could he have gotten wedged in on such a short walk which has caused him to be obscured for 20 years? Studebkr mentioned that there was possibly the sewer renovation project happening around this same time, but unless he fell down an open hole and ended up deep in the ground, surely he would have been found. Some people have suggested he fell down an open manhole, but I assume sewer systems get checked every now and again for construction purposes.

Yes, I know there was talk of a sewer project at the time, but I can't recall the details about it. In a way, it would make sense as to this 'clueless' disappearance, but I assume that possibility was fully explored at the time? Do Jason's parents have any theories as to what happened?

 

[Dnp2be]

TBH, I would hope law enforcement would have been doing something like this periodically all along. I get resources are scarce, but even just one shift a year, walking around the neighborhood, knocking on doors, speaking to folks in their front yards, or walking their dogs. Something.

I am also from the area and am familiar with the LE in the area. I don't know what they have done regarding this case but I haven't heard about it for quite some time and I do read the news websites here. My experience with law enforcement here has never been pleasant. In fact the last time I got pulled over if was for "tinted Windows being too dark". I was appalled by the whole incident. I ended up waiting for K9 as they decided they wanted to search my car, the male cop was arguing that my car was stolen (I had the car dealership papers right in my glove box that he refused to look at) and the female cop kept telling me to "shut up, you liar. Stop lying". And for the record, I still have the car, it's still in my name, and it definitely wasn't stolen. But that's always been my experience with LE in omaha. So it wouldn't at all surprise me if they haven't done anything in this case for 19 years. Some of LE seem to have different priorities than protecting and serving IMO. Although im sure every place has its problems and im sure their are some well meaning LE here who do take their job and everyone's safety seriously. I wish I could offer up something that would help this case but I think reinterviewing would be a good start. Seems that people who maybe haven't been forthcoming get their stories mixed up over time or Someone shares something they do didn't think was important then that is helpful to the case. All IMO and IME.

 

[ekardh]

I don't see much potential for an accident on the relatively brief walk through the suburb. Not unless Jason was somewhere he wasn't meant to be, and there's no sign of that. I understand why this theory could gather traction, because with no identifiable suspect or motive, it is as if Jason dropped into a wormhole.