Missing Woman: Jennifer Kesse -- FL -- 01/24/2006

[Denise]

Name: Jennifer Joyce Kesse
Classification: Endangered Missing Adult
Alias / Nickname: Jenn
Date of Birth: 1981-05-20
Date Missing: 2006-01-24
From City/State: Orlando, FL
Missing From (Country): USA
Age at Time of Disappearance: 24
Gender: Female
Race: White
Height: 68 inches
Weight: 130 pounds
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Green
Complexion: Medium
Glasses/Contacts Description: Clear contacts.

Identifying Characteristics: Double pierced ears, tattoo of a small "shamrock" on left side of buttock below the bikini line, birthmark on left middle finger, skin tags on outside of left hand, non-raised faded strawberry birthmark on rib area, surgical scars on left elbow, cleft in chin, dark eyebrows.
Jewelry: Possibly wearing a diamond necklace with three stones which represent past, present, and future.

Circumstances of Disappearance: Unknown. Jennifer was last contacted via phone at approximately 10:00pm at her residence in the vicinity of the 3700 block of Conroy Rd. in Orlando, FL. It is presumed she left for work around 8:00am the following morning. Her vehicle, described as a black, four door, 2004 Chevy Malibu was located several days later at an apartment complex one mile from her residence in the vicinity of Texas and Americana in Orlando, FL.

Investigative Agency: City of Orlando Police Department
Phone: (321) 235-5300
Alternate Phone: (407) 246-2962
Investigative Case #: 06-32039
NCIC #: M-95548802

Print a poster: http://www.projectjason.org/aan/AAN_JenniferKesse.pdf

[Denise]

Police Find Few Clues In Search For Missing Woman
http://tinyurl.com/bxtkv
POSTED: 11:17 am EST January 25, 2006

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Orlando police are looking for a missing woman who never showed up for work on Tuesday.

Her family said that's not like her, WESH 2 News reported.

Jennifer Kesse, 24, and her 2004 black Chevrolet Malibu are missing. Police said she lives at the Mosaic Apartments on Conroy Road, near the Mall at Millenia.

"It's not usual for her not to have contacted anybody on her cell phone, and more importantly, for the cell phone to be turned off," said her mother, Joyce Kesse.

When Jennifer Kesse did not show up at work on Tuesday, her Ocoee investment office called her parents.

"'We don't want to alarm you, but Jennifer hasn't showed up for work. She hasn't called. She hasn't e-mailed, she hasn't shown up for work.' Jennifer is the type of person if she is running 15 minutes late, she's going to call you to say, 'I'm running 15 minutes late,'" her mother said.

Her parents called the staff at the Mosaic Apartments. The condo was checked and the door was locked and nothing was disturbed.

No one has heard from Kesse since she had a cell phone conversation with her boyfriend at about 10 p.m. on Monday. Her family said it is very uncharacteristic for her to lose contact with her family, and it's even more unusual for her to not show up for work.

Her brother said she just started living alone in November and was uneasy about the number of people around the complex daily.

"The workers were around all the time, and naturally a girl living alone for the first time" said her brother, Logan Kesse.

Orlando officers who usually patrol other areas of the city went several hundred yards into the dense brush behind her building on Wednesday.

"Kind of working our way through it just looking for anything, anything of interest," said Sgt. Robert Anzueto, of the Orlando Police Department.

So far, they haven't found any clues.

The family said Jennifer Kesse was so safety conscious that she used to call a friend or family members while she walked through parking lots at night.

"Somebody has to have seen something. Somebody had to have heard something," her mother said.

"Imagine how they feel. They're trying to contact their daughter, they don't get a contact with her, and then she doesn't show up for work," said Sgt. Barbara Jones, of the Orlando Police Department. "It's huge for a family not to know, especially if they have a close relationship with their daughter and they communicate on a regular basis."

Jones said if people do certain things routinely in their life and then all of the sudden they don't do that, that raises suspicions.

"If it's suspicious and concerning to them, we're going to take that very seriously," Jones said.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Orlando Police Department or CrimeLine at (800) 423-TIPS. A $1,000 reward is being offered for any information about her whereabouts. Her car has Florida tags, license number H90-KYC.

[Denise]

Woman Mysteriously Vanishes On Way To Mail Package
http://www.local6.com/news/6443122/detail.html
POSTED: 6:47 pm EST January 25, 2006

Authorities in Orlando, Fla., are searching for a University of Central Florida graduate who did not show up for work Tuesday after she said she was going to mail a package, according to a Local 6 News report.

Investigators said Jennifer Kesse, 24, did not show up for work at Westgate Resorts in Ocoee, Fla., Tuesday morning.

Family and friends are concerned because she can always be reached by phone or by her family. Kesse's family has tried to call her cell phone but calls are immediately sent to voice mail.

"I don't think any mother, father or brother expects to stand in front of a camera and ask a community to help," Kesse's father, Drew, said.

Friends and family of Kesse are going door-to-door with flyers in hopes of generating some leads.

"We always, always hope that in these cases that it is just a matter of somebody just maybe going somewhere to have their own time," Orlando police Sgt. Barbara Jones said. "And we hope that maybe if she sees this even, she will contact the family and let them know."

Kesse told her friends and family that she was concerned about living alone at her apartment complex.

The woman's apartment complex has a security gate but the family said visitors are not monitored.

Kesse's car is a 2004 black 4-door Chevrolet Malibu with the license tag H90-KYC.

The last person to hear from her was her boyfriend but he does not know where she could have gone.

If you have any information concerning Kesse's whereabouts, you are urged to call Crimeline at (800) 423-TIPS.

[Denise]

Police: Missing Woman's Car Found
http://www.wesh.com/news/6461195/detail.html
POSTED: 8:57 am EST January 26, 2006

Police believe they've found a car belonging to a woman missing in Orlando for three days.

Investigators said the car belonging to Jennifer Kesse, 24, was found near her home, WESH 2 News reported.

The vehicle was found at Huntington on the Greens Apartments at Americana and Texas, officials said.

Kesse's boss said she never showed up at work on Tuesday. She was last heard from Monday night.

Her family and former University of Central Florida sorority sisters are talking to people around her Mosaic of Millenia condominium to help gather more information.

[Denise]

Missing Woman's Friends, Family Come Together

POSTED: 4:44 pm EST January 26, 2006
UPDATED: 5:26 pm EST January 26, 2006

http://www.wftv.com/news/6472527/detail.html
TIPS: Call Crimeline At 1-800-423-TIPS

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Jennifer Kesse's family has been on pins and needles. Her father has been pacing all day as officers look for his daughter. Still, as everything unravels, the family said they believe Jennifer will come home alive.

Jennifer graduated from the University of Central Florida in 2003 with a degree in finance. In college, she was well liked and was a member of the Alpha Delta Pi sorority. Her sorority sisters have helped with the search by passing out flyers and standing by as officers canvass Orlando.

Her friend Kristen Luther is asking everyone to help.

"Please bring her back. If you have her, please bring her back. We would do anything to bring have her back, anything at all," she said.

All of her friends, as well as her family, said the circumstances were unusual. Jennifer had everything going for her. She bought a condo two months ago. She worked at Westgate Properties and had just gotten promoted. Friends said there is no apparent reason why she would have left the area.

Now, Jennifer's father said the only thing left to do is hope that finding his daughter's car will help them find Jennifer.

Jennifer’s relatives and friends have been coming in from all over the country to offer the family support. Many said they were in town to give the family encouragement and to help.

[Denise]

http://www.local6.com/news/6470611/detail.html

Search Continues For Missing Orlando Woman

Girl Vanished On Way To Mail Package

POSTED: 3:26 pm EST January 26, 2006
UPDATED: 6:08 pm EST January 26, 2006

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- Officers performed a grid search in a wooded area Thursday afternoon after the car of a missing Orlando woman was found parked at a condominium complex hours earlier, according to police.

Investigators said Jennifer Kesse, 24, did not show up for work at Westgate Resorts in Ocoee, Fla., Tuesday morning.

Family and friends were immediately concerned because Kesse can always be reached by phone or by her family. Kesse's family has tried to call her cell phone, but calls are immediately sent to voice mail.

Thursday, about 15 officers went into a wooded area between where the car was located and where Kesse vanished at the Mosaic at Millenia condominiums.

"As we concluded that search, she was not located in that wooded area," Orlando police Sgt. Barbara Jones said.

Earlier, Kesse's 2004 Chevrolet Malibu was found abandoned at the corner of Texas and Americana at the Huntington on the Green apartment complex.

Officers responded to the car and did not find a person inside the vehicle, Jones said.

It was not known how long the car was parked at the condo, Local 6 News reported.

Detectives were going door to door asking residents if they had any information about the woman or the car.

Jones did not know if there was any surveillance video in the area where the car was found.

If you have any information concerning Kesse's whereabouts, you are urged to call Crimeline at (800) 423-TIPS.

[Denise]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/...news-headlines

Police search for clues to woman's disapperance

Bloodhounds set loose after missing woman's car is discovered

Henry Pierson Curtis | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted January 26, 2006, 8:48 PM EST

The discovery of a missing Orlando's woman car this morning raised hopes that she might still be found alive, three days after she vanished.

By mid-afternoon, Jennifer Kesse's father spoke to more than a dozen TV, radio and newspapers reporters from across Florida before delivering the same message on national TV.

"She's out there. She's strong. She's smart," Drew Kesse said. "Just hang in there. We're close. And we'll get you."

The mystery of her disappearance deepened within an hour of the car's recovery at 8:10 a.m. not far from Kesse residence. Orange County sheriff's bloodhound Bo took a sniff of the driver's seat and pulled handler Sgt. Jeff Brown at a loping pace for a mile.

The scent led straight to the front door of Kesse's home in Mosaic at Millenia, an upscale, gated and fenced condominium complex with 24-hour security on Americana Boulevard.

The trail bypassed the complex's only entrance and led to a stretch of fence separating the public sidewalk from its private grounds. Once the 6-year-old bloodhound entered the grounds, the dog picked up the scent inside the fence and went directly to a staircase leading to Kesse's second-floor condominium.

Orlando police homicide detectives would not speculate on who abandoned Kesse's Chevrolet Malibu near the intersection of Americana and Texas Avenue and then walked or ran back to her home.

"Obviously, we get more concerned as time passes but we certainly are going to keep our hopes up," said Sgt. Barbara Jones, the department spokeswoman.

Missing persons cases are relatively common in Central Florida with more than 3,000 listed at least briefly each year in Orange County alone.

An impromptu search for the 24-year-old financial analyst began Tuesday when she failed to go to work at Central Florida Investments or answer her cell phone.

Extremely responsible since childhood, her uncharacteristic absence alarmed family members in Bradenton and more than a dozen former classmates at the University of Central Florida. By Tuesday night, they began distributing posters asking the public to help find the 5-feet, 8-inch tall, 135-pound blonde with green eyes.

"She's got the whole package. She's just one of those girls you go to for anything," said friend and college roommate Jenny Peppers. "She's got street smarts and book smarts. She's a very bright girl."

The last time anyone heard from Kesse was about 10 p.m. Monday when she called Rob Allen, her boyfriend who lives in Fort Lauderdale, her friends and police said.

Allen, 29, and Kesse met last year when she and several of her friends went to the Tiki Bar, a popular meeting place in downtown Orlando's nightclub district, said Cari McKibben, who roomed with Kesse for five years.

This afternoon, Allen, McKibben, Peppers and about 20 of Kesse's relatives and friends from as far away as Boston gathered at her condominium to wait for news from police. Many were UCF 2003 graduates, who described her with the same terms of determination, intelligence and ambition that had followed her since elementary school in Tampa when she received all A's on her report card.

At Gaither High School in Hillsborough County, where she belonged to the Fellowships of Christian Students, Spanish Honors Society and graduated in 1999, Principal Brenda Grasso told the St. Petersburg Times newspaper, "She left us with a very high GPA. ... What an awful shame.''

Today's investigation in Orlando included searches of storage closets in the 3-story building where she lives and a search of scrub pines and brush at the back of the property. Another search was conducted at Huntington on the Green condominiums, where the missing Chevy Malibu was found parked between a white Dodge pickup and a Jeep Cherokee.

Crime scene technicians picked through a nearby dumpster and photographed a gym-style bag along with several pieces of discarded furniture. Afterwards, Kesse's car was carried away by a flatbed tow truck for a forensic inspection of its interior and body.

Homicide detectives Emmett Browning and Glenn Gause returned to the complex late this afternoon to inspect a security camera system with a view of the spot where Kesse's car had been parked. They did not say if there is film of who abandoned the car.

[Denise]

http://www.wesh.com/news/6489961/detail.html

Friends, Family Search For Missing Woman

POSTED: 6:13 am EST January 27, 2006
UPDATED: 7:01 am EST January 27, 2006

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Friends and family will launch a major search Friday to find An Orlando woman who has been missing for nearly four days.

Police discovered Kesse's car, but that's the last big break, and it happened Thursday morning, WESH 2 News reported.

The search is set to begin at 7:30 a.m., and about 100 of Kesse's friends and family members will gather at the Huntington on the Green condominium complex, where her car was found.

They'll fan out to area intersections to distribute flyers. They're hoping someone might recognize Kesse and pass along some information about her disappearance.

There was a glimmer of hope Thursday when Kesse's car was found about a mile from where she lives. A bloodhound followed a scent from the driver's seat of her car right back to the condominium complex where she lived. An intense search in the nearby woods did not appear to turn up any new clues.

But Kesse's father had an emotional message for his daughter Thursday night, and he remains hopeful.

"Your family and your friends love you. We know you are there. We will find you. We will not stop, and God, we will find you, and just be smart, as we know you are, and be strong, as we know you are," Drew Kesse said.

A family friend said there has been no new activity on Kesse's cell phone, credit cards or her E-Pass. She was reported missing when she failed to show up for her job as a financial analyst Tuesday morning. The last known contact with her was a phone conversation with her boyfriend around 10 p.m. Monday.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/...home-headlines

Father asks for help in search for missing daughter

Search for 24-year-old Jennifer Kesse continues into fourth day

Henry Pierson Curtis and Rich McKay | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted January 27, 2006, 7:27 PM EST

The search for a missing Orlando woman continued today with renewed pleas for the public's vigilance.

Drew Kesse asked that everyone keep an eye out for his 24-year-old daughter, not just in Central Florida but nationwide.

"Even if you're in Kansas or Massachusetts,'' he said, saying even the most seemingly inconsequential tip could help find her. "This is how it works.''

The search for Jennifer Kesse began Tuesday after she did not show up for work. The absence alarmed family and friends, who contacted police saying she wouldn't miss an appointment without notifying someone of her plans.

News coverage of her disappearance led to the discovery of her car Thursday morning, when a TV viewer recognized the black Chevrolet Malibu parked about a mile from Kesse's home at another condominium complex on Americana Boulevard.

Orlando police will not speculate on what happened to Kesse, a financial analyst who graduated from the University of Central Florida.

"We have a lot of work to do and the detectives are working methodically through all the information they have received up to this point to try to find Jennifer," police spokeswoman Sgt. Barbara Jones said this afternoon.

Three detectives are assigned to work on the case through the weekend and others will be called in as needed for fresh leads, according to police.

Jones confirmed that a bloodhound tracked the scent of whoever abandoned Kesse's car back to her home at Mosaic at Millenia, a condominium complex. She declined to say what clues, if any, were found in the car. Investigators are studying video from a surveillance camera for clues, but Jones would not comment on what it shows or where the video was shot.

However, the parking space where the car was recovered at Huntington on the Green condominiums is almost in direct line of sight of a surveillance camera mounted on the complex's pool house.

Kesse's network of family and friends spent today handing out fliers about her disappearance to motorists at intersections.

Posters with a photograph of the 5-feet, 8-inch, 135-pound blonde with green eyes are taped to mailboxes and signs in southwest Orlando and nearby neighborhoods in unincorporated Orange County. Each carries the telephone number of Crimeline at 800-423-8477, a clearinghouse for tips.

At a midday news conference, Drew Kesse spoke directly to his daughter while appealing for the public's help.

"Jennifer, I am going to find you," he said. "You stay (safe), be smart. I will find you.''

[Denise]

-- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.local6.com/news/6515674/detail.html

$100,000 Reward Offered In Missing Woman Case

POSTED: 12:36 am EST January 28, 2006
UPDATED: 1:15 am EST January 28, 2006

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A reward for information in the mysterious disappearance of an Orlando, Fla., woman was increased to $100,000 late Friday, according to Local 6 News.

Investigators said Jennifer Kesse, 24, did not show up for work at Westgate Resorts in Ocoee, Fla., Tuesday morning.

The first break in the case came Thursday when Kesse's 2004 Chevrolet Malibu was found abandoned at the corner of Texas and Americana at the Huntington on the Green apartment complex. Neighbors said the vehicle had been parked in the lot for several days.

After Kesse's vehicle was found, officers performed a grid search of a wooded area near the Mosaic at Millenia condominiums but nothing was found in the area.

Kesse's parents continued to ask the public for help in the case Friday night.

"Jennifer, we just want you to know that we love you," Kesse's mother, Joy, said. "We are doing everything we can to find you and bring you home."

"People are coming for her," Kesse's father, Drew, said. "Her father and others are coming for her."

Orlando police officers will continue searching several areas Saturday.

Investigators said the reward for information in the case was raised from $15,000 to $100,000 after a private donor offered the money.

If you have any information concerning this case, you are urged to call Crimeline at (800) 423-TIPS.

http://cfn13.com/

Woman Remains Missing
On Sunday, mounted officers are joining in the search for an Orlando woman who's been missing now for nearly a week.

Twenty-four-year-old Jennifer Kesse was last seen or heard from last Monday night. When she failed to show up for work the next day friends and family began to worry. That's when police began an intensive search for the missing woman.

Friends and family are back out this weekend passing out flyers near her home at the Mosaic Condos across from the Mall at Millenia. They hope with the fliers someone will give investigators a lead that will help them find Kesse.

Police found her car Thursday less than a mile from her home, at the Huntington on the Greens condominiums at Texas and Americana, but there was no sign of Kesse.

On Sunday, mounted police will do a search on horseback of the isolated and wooded areas around the area looking for any clues related to her disappearance.

An anonymous donor came forward to add $100,000 to the reward being offered for any information in the disappearance of Jennifer Kesse on Friday. The reward is now $115,000.

If you have any information, you're asked to call CrimeLine at 1-800-423-TIPS.

[Denise]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/...adlines-orange
Posted January 29, 2006

ORLANDO -- Friends and family of a missing Orlando woman distributed thousands of fliers Saturday while police again searched Mosaic Condominiums, where she lives, and Huntington on the Greens Condominiums, where her car was found Thursday.

Jennifer Kesse, 24, has been missing since Tuesday, and a $115,000 reward is being offered for her safe return.

Police went door-to-door, talking to residents and checking vacant units at both complexes.

Mounted sheriff's and police units will search isolated and wooded areas today.

Anyone with information can call Crimeline at 1-800-423-8477.

Reward In Missing Woman Case Climbs To $115,000
http://tinyurl.com/dgs7r
POSTED: 7:02 am EST January 30, 2006
UPDATED: 10:37 am EST January 30, 2006

ORLANDO, Fla. -- January 23, one week ago, was the last time anyone heard from a missing Orlando woman. Family and friends searched all weekend for any signs of 24-year-old Jennifer Kesse.

By releasing clips of home video, the family hopes images of Jennifer will remain fresh in the minds of viewers, who, as a result, could provide detectives with new leads.

By sharing the memories of Jennifer's childhood, her parents are hoping the public will feel what they feel. But as each day passes without a trace of their 24-year-old daughter, all the home videos and the flyers may not be enough for her safe return.

Now, Drew and Joyce Kesse are relying on a higher power. They were comforted by a Sunday morning service at the First Baptist Church of Orlando.

Later Sunday afternoon, police and volunteers searched the wooded areas around Jennifer's condo on horseback. Detectives wouldn’t say if they found new clues, but police did tell the Kesse family they're processing several leads.

Jennifer's parents said they're indebted to the community for the tremendous show of support.

"We just, from the bottom of our hearts, appreciate every person. Strangers have been coming up to us [asking] 'What can we do?'" Jennifer’s parents commented.

Jennifer was last seen leaving her office at Westgate Resorts in Ocoee on Monday night. Her empty car was found Thursday.

The family will not rest until she is found. The reward is now at $115,000.
Truckingboards.com

[Denise]

Police Using Surveillance Video In Search For Woman

UPDATED: January 31, 2006

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Police are using surveillance video from stores to try to find missing 24-year-old Jennifer Kesse. Officers have already taken the tapes from several businesses located near Jennifer's condo, which is near the Mall of Millenia.

Police are now releasing a timeline as to when they think Jennifer's car came through the South John Young Parkway corridor and detectives are scouring the store surveillance tapes hoping one of the cameras captured something to narrow the timeline.

Jennifer's car is still the best clue police have. A woman, who didn't want to be identified, but lives in the Huntington on the Green apartments where Jennifer's car was found last Thursday morning, remembers seeing the car a whole day earlier, Wednesday morning. She nearly hit it, in the lot.

"My kids were making noise in the car and I almost backed into it," she said. "I didn't notice that car before and, when I noticed it, I knew it wasn't somebody staying around here."

Police want to hear from anyone who may have seen the Chevy Malibu anytime after 10pm Monday night, when Jennifer last spoke to her boyfriend, and Thursday morning at 8am, when the car was found.

Detectives think Jennifer herself, or someone else, was traveling on South John Young Parkway, between Texas and Americana and Conroy Road by the Mall of Millenia, during that time frame.

A manager at the 7-Eleven along John Young and Americana confirmed that police collected their outdoor surveillance tapes looking for clues.

The sheriff's helicopter crew searched the same vicinity and the woods next to Mosaic condos, where Jennifer lives, along with Orlando's mounted patrol. The bloodhounds who first picked up a scent from Jennifer's car last Thursday were on the hunt again at Huntington on the Green apartments Tuesday. Some residents there have been interviewed by detectives two and three times.

Jennifer's family picked up another 50,000 fliers to distribute Tuesday. They now have the help of Orlando firefighters, who have permission to pass out flyers during their calls for service, especially in high crime areas that might not be safe for Jennifer’s family and friends.

Jennifer was last heard from eight days ago and was reported missing after she failed to show up for work Tuesday. Her car was found about three-quarters of a mile away from her condo on Thursday. Police have not yet released what, if anything, they found inside the car.

A $115,000 reward has been established for anyone who has information that will help find Jennifer.

http://www.wftv.com/news/

Police Expand Search For Missing 24-Year-Old Woman

UPDATED: February 1, 2006

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Late Wednesday morning, Orlando police expanded their search to find a missing woman. Jennifer Kesse, 24, disappeared nine days ago. Police are now looking through more wooded areas and volunteers are handing out thousands more missing person fliers.

Orlando police are calling this a new grid search. They are focusing their efforts further out from where Jennifer's car was found, concentrating mostly on wooded areas using the mounted patrol. Kesse's family was told tips that have been coming in prompted the new search.

In recent days, the sheriff's helicopter crew has been circling the brush and woods just outside the Mosaic Condos where Jennifer lives. The crew and Orlando Police Department’s mounted patrol has also been concentrating efforts very close to where Jennifer’s car was found last Thursday at the Huntington on the Green apartments at Texas and Americana.

Meanwhile, Orlando firefighters were given permission to hand out flyers while on duty, but in between calls for service, in crime-ridden areas like Parramore and Richmond Heights, where Jennifer's family and friends have been discouraged from going.

In addition, the family is now calling on the help of a national missing persons organization, called ChildWatch, hoping the added resources will make a difference.

As the days go by, more and more people are lining up to help, like veterans groups and church groups, with 50,000 more fliers expected to be handed out.

http://www.wftv.com/

[Denise]

http://www.wesh.com/news/6648581/detail.html

Missing Woman's Parents Discuss Struggle

POSTED: 8:34 am EST February 1, 2006
UPDATED: 9:26 am EST February 1, 2006

ORLANDO, Fla. -- As a search for Jennifer Kesse moves into its second week, the parents of the missing Orlando woman are talking about their struggle.

"At night, at the end of the day, when it's dark, it's hell," Joyce Kesse said.

Inside the condominium that is serving as a command post in the effort to distribute flyers, Joyce and Drew Kesse said they plan to stay in Orlando as long as it takes to get their daughter back safely.

But they admitted they may need some emotional help if the search for their daughter drags on.

[Denise]

Huge Weekend Search Planned For Missing Woman

POSTED: 4:13 pm EST February 1, 2006
http://tinyurl.com/clvxr

VOLUNTEER: To sign up to help in the effort this weekend, visit the community center at the Mall at Millenia (entrance between Brio and the Cheesecake Factory) Thursday or Friday during normal mall hours.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A group called Child Watch announced Wednesday it will help look for 24-year-old Jennifer Kesse, who's been missing for nine days. Family members asked the community to join in on another search this weekend.

Meanwhile, detectives looked through an expanded area Wednesday, bordered by Texas Avenue, Orange Blossom Trail, Holden Avenue and Oak Ridge Road.

The Kesse family is hoping to inject a new energy into the search for Jennifer. Hundreds of volunteers will take part in the biggest effort yet to find her this weekend.

In the meantime, though, police began Wednesday what they are calling a new grid search, based on tips that have been coming in. Sheriff's deputies with the mounted patrol jumped off their horses and over a fence Wednesday along Texas Avenue off of John Young Parkway after a citizen called in a tip.

With turkey vultures circling a pond, deputies wanted to be sure they weren't missing anything. It was all part of the new grid search that's using about 15 mounted patrol officers between the Orlando Police Department and the sheriff's office combined, searching further out north and south from where Jennifer’s car was found along Texas and Americana last Thursday.

The search team even scoured woods next to the pond after picking up a strange stench. It turned out to be old garbage. They said covering new ground, on foot at times and especially on horseback, opens them up to more information.

"A lot of people come out when they see the horses and talk to us. So, we're hoping, they may give us new info or maybe they witnessed something,” said

"Nothing is too tiny. Give a call to the hotline. You can be anonymous,” Jennifer’s father, Drew, said.

Jennifer's mother and father, in their biggest appeal to the public yet, know how critical every bit of information could be to finding their daughter. That's why they've secured the help of Child Watch, a national missing persons organization based in Orlando, to better coordinate their efforts and greatly increase the number of volunteers combing for clues.

Child Watch founder Don Wood said his group will spend the next two days signing up what is hoped to be hundreds of volunteers at the Mall at Millenia.

Those who want to sign up to help in the Child Watch effort this weekend should visit the community center at the Mall at Millenia (entrance between Brio and the Cheesecake Factory). Most who sign up will distribute flyers, but some will actually head into the woods and search.

[Denise]

Web Site Launched In Search For Missing Orlando Woman
POSTED: February 3, 2006

http://jenniferkesse.com/

More than 150 volunteers have signed up for Saturday's scheduled search for an Orlando woman who mysteriously vanished last week.

Members of Child Watch of North America joined the search for 24-year-old Jennifer Kesse early this week and immediately planned an organized search Saturday.

Kesse was reported missing last Tuesday after she did not show up for work at Westgate Resorts in Ocoee, Fla.

Friday, the family launched a Web site to keep Kesse's name and story circulating.

The Web site contains photos, notes from the family and a guest book where visitors can leave messages.

Local 6 News reported that one of the Web site posts was from a concerned citizen in Anchorage, Alaska.

"I just think what if that was my daughter?" volunteer Tony Brower said. "I wouldn't like this to happen, and if it was my wife I'd sure like people to come out and help as much as they can."

Orlando police will resume their search of wooded areas near Kesse's apartment Friday.

Teams of police officers and sheriff's deputies searched areas inside the boundaries of Texas Avenue to the west, Orange Blossom Trail to the east, Oakridge Road to the south and Holden Avenue to the north.

Nearly 100 anonymous Crimeline tips have been made since last week, but the woman remains missing.

Volunteers for Saturday's search are asked to sign up at the Mall at Millenia from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Members will be photographed, given a badge and put into a search party. Registration will be held at the community room near the Banana Republic store at the mall.

A $115,000 reward is being offered for information about Kesse's whereabouts.

If you have any information, you are urged to call Crimeline at (800) 423-TIPS.

http://www.local6.com/

[Denise]

http://cfn13.com/StoryHeadline.aspx?id=13063

The Search For Jennifer
Volunteers to be out Saturday to search for Jennifer Kesse.

Volunteers will be out in force Saturday searching for 24-year-old Jennifer Kesse who's been missing now for nearly two weeks.

Jennifer Kesse was last heard from on January 23rd at her condo near the Mall at Millenia. She didn't show up for work the next morning and hasn't been seen since.

Since then family, friends and police have scoured the area on foot and on horseback looking for the missing woman.

Now the group Childwatch is asking for volunteers to conduct a widespread search for the woman over the weekend.

Organizers of the search say the more people they can get to help, the more area they can cover.

Anyone interested in joining the search teams can go to the Mall at Millenia Saturday between 8:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. and sign up.

The reward for information in Kesse's disappearance is at $115,000.

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Police Release Surveillance Pictures

Orlando Police are releasing two surveillance pictures that they hope will provide a break in the Jennifer Kesse case.

The pictures show a man they're describing as a person of interest.

Police say the photos were taken in the area of Texas and Americana around noon on January 24th, which is the day Jennifer failed to show up for work.

Police aren't releasing much information about these images, but they say the man is a pedestrian who appears to be wearing dark colored shoes and a white top.

Despite the fuzziness of these pictures, investigators say they hope someone in the public can identify him

Volunteers spent part of their Saturday searching for Jennifer. The search was organized by a group called Child Watch.

Jennifer Kesse has been missing nearly two weeks. Her car was found in an apartment complex parking lot a few days after she vanished.