MN - Jacob Wetterling, 11, St. Joseph, 22 Oct 1989 - #6

[shergal]

Really, what kind of sketches? A guy with a mask in the dark night?

Well, that main sketch was done with Jared's help, based on what he remembered of his abductor - because LE felt the cases were related. I think that is the sketch Gigler is referring to.

 

[kemo]

Jared got a good look at his abductor and was able to view Hart in a lineup yet we have no indication that Hart was ever identified as a "suspect" in Jared's case. I would conclude that he probably was not the guy but will probably never get an official "rule out".

The wording of the article suggests rather strongly that the Wetterling investigation put the heat on all pedophiles in the area and, as a result of the investigation, Hart was turned in as a "seducer-type" who was molesting two boy he knew but he wasn't considered a serious suspect in the Jared or Wetterling case.

 

[Pensfan]

Jared got a good look at his abductor and was able to view Hart in a lineup yet we have no indication that Hart was ever identified as a "suspect" in Jared's case. I would conclude that he probably was not the guy but will probably never get an official "rule out".

The wording of the article suggests rather strongly that the Wetterling investigation put the heat on all pedophiles in the area and, as a result of the investigation, Hart was turned in as a "seducer-type" who was molesting two boy he knew but he wasn't considered a serious suspect in the Jared or Wetterling case.

bbm
Agreed. Hart is a Fixated Preferential Molester who groomed his many victims.

 

[cGorg]

They are all like that in there, but some crazy lawyers want to let these people out. It makes me sick!!!

Don't you think his poverty and his use of chemical substances since age 6 make it hard to believe he can be a master criminal?

I agree about letting these sickos out! But why does he have to be a master criminal? Was Son of Sam a master criminal or was he simply driven by the voices he heard in his head? I frankly don't think it took a master criminal to abduct Jacob on a desolate road on a moonless night(moonless at least during the abduction) on an unsuspecting public. I don't know who took Jacob but if it was DAH, then is it too much of a stretch to think that given his history he could ultimately abduct a boy? DAH appears to me a powder keg.

 

[human]

what I mean by a Master criminal in this case is that he has managed to not leave any clues or do anything to call attention to himself over the years.

a person who has been abusing chemicals since age 6 is a physical and mental mess. Alcohol destroys brain cells and he has had years of brain cell destruction. And he used some kind of drugs as well.

Think of the people that you see that are long time alcohol and drug users. What kind of condition are they in?

He has two goals in life. Get drunk or drugged up. That is number one. Then, get kids for his use.

People who use alcohol to that extent start in the AM just to get normal.

I cannot even imagine a six year old user

 

[ELOCsoul]

what I mean by a Master criminal in this case is that he has managed to not leave any clues or do anything to call attention to himself over the years.

a person who has been abusing chemicals since age 6 is a physical and mental mess. Alcohol destroys brain cells and he has had years of brain cell destruction. And he used some kind of drugs as well.

Think of the people that you see that are long time alcohol and drug users. What kind of condition are they in?

He has two goals in life. Get drunk or drugged up. That is number one. Then, get kids for his use.

People who use alcohol to that extent start in the AM just to get normal.

I cannot even imagine a six year old user

Agreed. It's not likely that DAH could have committed this crime without leaving a trail. Just MO, but if I had to put a number on it I would say there is less than 5% chance that DAH was the perp in Jacob's abduction.

 

[cGorg]

Agreed. It's not likely that DAH could have committed this crime without leaving a trail. Just MO, but if I had to put a number on it I would say there is less than 5% chance that DAH was the perp in Jacob's abduction.

Fair enough. I concede human's point that DAH's brain may have been fried by alcohol + drugs. However, could the alcohol + drugs have emboldened him to take a huge risk? He seemed to have an insatiable sexual appetite for young boys(sorry for the brashness)-almost relentless. Were there any further abductions or attempts after he was incarcerated in 1990? Obviously his history of repeated molestations eventually found him out in the way of victims coming forward...a 'trail' of victims testimony as it were-so not good in the 'master criminal' categorization. But if he were so bold as to abduct Jacob by car and leave the scene...what trail of evidence would he have left? Tire tracks for sure...but also the gravelly voice. If he smoked + drank since youth, I would think his voice would reflect that. But given his history I am not sure of his access to a vehicle. And having said that...do you think DAH could be a possibility in Jared's case? Jared by his recent statements doesn't seem to definitively point to DAH. But even so, if DAH is a possiblilty in Jared's case then he would still need access to a vehicle so it can't be 2 ways: a suspect in Jared's case but not a suspect in Jacob's case. DAH, although not high on my list of suspects does give me pause. Given his driven nature of molestation...could he have ultimately decided to abduct one boy and thus end his stalking?

 

[shergal]

Fair enough. I concede human's point that DAH's brain may have been fried by alcohol + drugs. However, could the alcohol + drugs have emboldened him to take a huge risk? He seemed to have an insatiable sexual appetite for young boys(sorry for the brashness)-almost relentless. Were there any further abductions or attempts after he was incarcerated in 1990? Obviously his history of repeated molestations eventually found him out in the way of victims coming forward...a 'trail' of victims testimony as it were-so not good in the 'master criminal' categorization. But if he were so bold as to abduct Jacob by car and leave the scene...what trail of evidence would he have left? Tire tracks for sure...but also the gravelly voice. If he smoked + drank since youth, I would think his voice would reflect that. But given his history I am not sure of his access to a vehicle. And having said that...do you think DAH could be a possibility in Jared's case? Jared by his recent statements doesn't seem to definitively point to DAH. But even so, if DAH is a possiblilty in Jared's case then he would still need access to a vehicle so it can't be 2 ways: a suspect in Jared's case but not a suspect in Jacob's case. DAH, although not high on my list of suspects does give me pause. Given his driven nature of molestation...could he have ultimately decided to abduct one boy and thus end his stalking?

I think DAH having access to a car at all is the biggest drawback to him being a suspect in either Jared's or Jacob's abductions. Besides having a record of molestation, he also had a long record of drug use, DUI's, etc. I doubt he even had a license by 1989. Of course, he could have borrowed someone's car. Or stolen a car. But the blue Celebrity type car described by Jared has never been mentioned as one of the colors of the many cars DR saw in his driveway, as far as I recall.

Jared's abductor had some sort of scanner in it, and Feeney's car was described as being outfitted like a cop car. I wonder if Jared has seen pics of Feeney when he was younger? Or if DAH knew Feeney and borrowed his car?

 

[cGorg]

I think DAH having access to a car at all is the biggest drawback to him being a suspect in either Jared's or Jacob's abductions. Besides having a record of molestation, he also had a long record of drug use, DUI's, etc. I doubt he even had a license by 1989. Of course, he could have borrowed someone's car. Or stolen a car. But the blue Celebrity type car described by Jared has never been mentioned as one of the colors of the many cars DR saw in his driveway, as far as I recall.

Jared's abductor had some sort of scanner in it, and Feeney's car was described as being outfitted like a cop car. I wonder if Jared has seen pics of Feeney when he was younger? Or if DAH knew Feeney and borrowed his car?

So, given all of the discussion of DAH....can we rule him out?

 

[ELOCsoul]

Jared's abductor had some sort of scanner in it, and Feeney's car was described as being outfitted like a cop car. I wonder if Jared has seen pics of Feeney when he was younger? Or if DAH knew Feeney and borrowed his car?

Doubtful IMO, Feeney's car was most likely a retired LE car. The car in Jared's abduction was new or nearly new.

 

[ELOCsoul]

So, given all of the discussion of DAH....can we rule him out?

Probably not completely, but LE brushed him aside as a suspect early on. Hart was not the man that was arrested in Jared's abduction, though. That I am sure of.

 

[Jbrown324320]

I am not ready to rule him out. He was unpredictable, dangerous and had no one to account for (put into a children's home and expelled probably sent him a signal of his own self worth). I know a bunch of people who still drive without a valid license. How else did he get to his job?

 

[shergal]

I was trying to find other sex offenders who may have been around the area in 1989 also, besides DAH. When I googled sex offenders in Stearns County in 1990, I got this site with pictures of several sex offenders from back then. It even has their photos, so you can compare their faces to the suspect drawing that Jared helped with. (And, yes, they are - or were - all priests.)
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/collections/catholic-church/special/archdiocese-priest-list/

(Scroll down and click on individual pictures for more details)

There seem to be several possibilities.
1. Cosmas Dahlheimer "was named in lawsuits between 1990 and 1994, accused of sexually abusing four children." Cosmas Dahlheimer lived in Cold Spring for a while. And without the glasses, he looks like the sketch, he has big ears. Most of his sexual assaults were during the 60's and 70's, but it seems they don't stop as they age.

2. Rev. Francis Hoefgen was a priest at St. Boniface church in Cold Spring, MN from 1980 to 1984. He "was accused of sexually assaulting a boy from 1989 to 1992 when the boy was 10 to 13 years old." Fr. Fran Hoefgen admitted that he sexually abused a teenager in Cold Spring, Minnesota in the early 1980's. The victim said that Hoefgen engaged him in oral sex on at least two occasions. Hoefgen apologized to another victim in a letter in or around 2001. The second victim alleged that Hoefgen engaged him in both anal and oral sex.

3. The polka padre - Rev. Robert Kapoun. Lived in Cold Spring in the 80's and 90's and still lives there now, when he's not at his winter home in Palmetto, FL.
The Rev. Robert Kapoun, 75, has admitted to sexually abusing at least nine boys. Kapoun molested them in saunas, rectories and the home where he now lives in Cold Spring, Minn. Five victims sued Kapoun for sexually abusing them during the 1980s and '90s.

4. Rev. Thomas (William) Gillespie, O.S.B. (I'm not sure why he's not on the list on this site, but he has been on other lists released recently, and has admitted molesting young boys.) He's in our who's who. He served from 1975-1976 at St. Boniface Parish (Cold Spring, MN), and from 1986-1996 in St. Joseph Parish (St. Joseph, MN). Fr. Tom Gillespie has at least four victims. Gillespie's youngest victim was reportedly 10 years old. Victims have reported rubbing of buttocks, hands down pants, fondling, inappropriate touching while wrestling, simulated anal sex, and masturbation by Gillespie. In 1996, Gillespie admitted to abusing a minor boy in Stillwater in 1978.

5. Rev. Brennan (Charles) Maiers, O.S.B. A 36-year-old cabinet maker from St. Joseph, Minn., filed suit against the Rev. Brennan Maiers in February 1992, charging Maiers had abused him when he was a 9-year-old altar boy in 1966. Brennan Maiers was an assistant pastor in St. Joseph between 1965 and 1968. Abuse allegations led, in part, to Fr. Brennan Maiers' removal from St. Bernard's Parish (St. Paul, MN) in or around 1990.

Many more possibilities listed here :
http://www.behindthepinecurtain.com/wordpress/thelist/


Also, if you haven't seen it before, please read post # 181 on page 8 here:
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30606&page=8

"There is speculation that the sheriff’s file on (Fr. Bruce) Wollmering is sealed because it contains information related to the disappearance of Jacob Wetterling or the disappearance of Joshua Guimond, or to both."

 

[ELOCsoul]

The man that was arrested in Jared's case was not Duane Allen Hart. Hart was a suspect in Jared's and Jacob's case, yes, from the beginning of the Wetterling investigation. Hart was brushed aside by LE as a suspect though.

Al Garber's book states that a man was arrested in Jared's case. From his book and various news articles, I am certain that the man that was arrested in Jared's abduction actually lived in Cold Spring, and was a known sex offender. The man was surveilled by the FBI for some time prior to his arrest. LE could not gather enough evidence to charge him formally, and he was released.

So how do we track down known offenders who lived in Cold Spring in 1989 / 1990, owned a newer blue 4 door car, had a portable police radio, and was fearful of being recognized by Jared?

 

[cGorg]

Composite and Photo.jpg (22.1 KB, 70 views)
Does anyone have a name for this man? SelTel's post #933, Thread #4, 4-17-2013, D.O.B. 3-27-1951

 

[cGorg]

This guy....who is he? Has he been overlooked on WS or did I miss something? His photo matches the sketch very well IMO.

 

[human]

It would be oh so nice if people quit playing games and give info. For instance, why put a pic of some random guy out there? Why?

That is sick, to me

 

[ELOCsoul]

Coincidentally, St. Joseph Catholic Church had its first mass celebrated in 1854, on October 22nd.

http://www.churchstjoseph.org/about-us/parish-history/

 

[shergal]

It would be oh so nice if people quit playing games and give info. For instance, why put a pic of some random guy out there? Why?

That is sick, to me

That was originally posted by Seltel, who refused to say who it was.

 

[shergal]

That suspect sketch could be so many people. For instance, I would suspect this known child molester, if I didn't know he was dead by 1989... http://murderpedia.org/male.H/h/hatcher-charles.htm