Jodi Huisentruit
Jodi Huisentruit | |
---|---|
legally dead in May 2001 | |
Education | St. Cloud State University |
Occupation | Television news anchor |
Jodi Sue Huisentruit (
Early life
Jodi Huisentruit was born and raised in Long Prairie, Minnesota,[1] the youngest daughter of Maurice Nicholas Huisentruit (1920–1982) and Imogene L. "Jane" Huisentruit (née Anderson, 1923–2014).[2] Huisentruit excelled at golf in high school and won the state Class A tournament along with her team in 1985 and 1986. After high school, she enrolled at St. Cloud State University where she studied mass communications and speech communication, graduating with a bachelor's degree in 1990. Her first job after graduation was with Northwest Airlines.[3]
Huisentruit began her broadcasting career with
.Disappearance
The day before her disappearance, Huisentruit participated in a golf tournament. According to Mason City resident John Vansice, she then went to his house to view a homemade videotape of a birthday celebration that he had arranged for her earlier that month.[4]
At about 4:00 a.m. on Tuesday, June 27, 1995, KIMT
When police arrived at Huisentruit's apartment, they found a red
Investigation
Investigators interviewed at least three neighbors at Huisentruit's apartment complex who said that they had heard screams around the time that she would have likely been leaving for work.
In September 1995, the Huisentruit family hired
In May 1996, approximately 100 volunteers searched an area of
Since 2000
In 2003, FindJodi.com was created by Minnesota television journalists Josh Benson and Gary Peterson with the goal to keep the case in the spotlight and for the website to serve as a clearinghouse for tips that might lead to Huisentruit.[19]
When new cases arise that appear to bear similarities with Huisentruit's, or whenever remains are discovered in the area, speculation quickly leads to a connection with the missing reporter. However, no suspect has been identified and all uncovered remains to date have proven to be from other sources. In 2005, many media outlets, including
In early June 2008, photocopies of the 84 pages of Huisentruit's personal journal were anonymously mailed to a local newspaper.[21] The Mason City Globe Gazette received the material in a large envelope with no return address and a June 4 postmark from Waterloo. The original journal has been in the possession of law enforcement since the investigation began.[22] Within days, Mason City police reported that the sender had come forward and was identified as the wife of the former Mason City police chief. Although noting that the former chief had taken a copy of the journal home when he left office, the police gave no motive as to why the woman had sent it to the newspaper.[23]
In May 2015, all 100 members of the
In March 2017, a
Since 2019, licensed private investigator Steve Ridge has been investigating the case.[26]
As of 2020, the Mason City police and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation were still actively investigating Huisentruit's disappearance.[27] That same year, Findjodi.com launched a podcast by the same name in order to gain a new audience to share information on the case and generate new leads.[28] In 2022, ABC's 20/20 debuted a new special titled "Gone at Dawn" overviewing the disappearance and interviewing those close with the case. This episode was the third time 20/20 featured the Huisentruit case.[29]
In 2023, Ridge offered $25,000 for information on Jodi's disappearance, doubling the total reward to $50,000.[30] Ridge said the offer has the blessing of Jodi's sister. “This reward does not require an arrest or conviction — but simply the recovery of Jodi’s remains,” Ridge said.
See also
References
- ^ Pieper, Mary (June 27, 2015). "Search for Jodi Huisentruit continues 20 years later". Globe Gazette. Retrieved April 13, 2016.
- ^ Peterson, Gary (December 11, 2014). "Remembering Imogene 'Jane' Huisentruit". Find Jodi. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
- ^ Molene, John (October 25, 1997). "Family plants endowment seed". St. Cloud Times. pp. 3A–4A. Retrieved January 14, 2017.
- ^ FindJodi.com, The search continues
- ^ "Community Still Haunted by Missing News Anchor". ABC News. July 1, 2005. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
- ^ url=https://www.kcci.com/article/jodi-huisentruit-disappearance-new-information-2023/44104613
- ^ "Jodi Huisentruit". True Crime Garage. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
- ^ Mastre, Brian (July 10, 2015). "Cold Case: News Anchor Abducted". WOWT. Archived from the original on January 18, 2020. Retrieved April 13, 2016.
- ^ "20 years later, TV anchor Jodi Huisentruit still missing". CBS News. June 25, 2015. Retrieved April 13, 2016.
- ^ "Officials still searching for missing newswoman". The Daily Reporter. Associated Press. June 29, 1995. Retrieved April 13, 2016.
- ^ Divine, Mary (June 19, 2015). "20 years later, search for Jodi Huisentruit hasn't ended". St. Paul Pioneer Press. Retrieved April 13, 2016.
- ^ "The strange case of Jodi Huisentruit". The Shields Gazette. November 27, 2014. Archived from the original on September 23, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2016.
- ^ Episode Number: 364; Season: 8; First Aired: February 18, 1996
- ^ "Psychics join search for anchorwoman". Post-Bulletin. November 13, 1995. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
- ^ Benson, Josh. "Jodi's Disappearance: 1st Year Timeline". Find Jodi. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
- Eugene Register-Guard. Associated Press. June 30, 1996. Retrieved April 13, 2016.
- ^ Sheriff: Human Remains From Adult Male – Des Moines News Story – KCCI Des Moines Archived June 5, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Bob, Link (May 15, 2001). "Court declares Jodi Huisentruit legally dead". Globe Gazette. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
- ^ "About Jodi • Find Jodi Huisentruit". Find Jodi Huisentruit. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
- ^ 20/20 Episode Number: 1405; Season: 26; First Aired: Friday July 1, 2005
- ^ "Journal of missing television anchor mailed to newspaper". Star Tribune. Associated Press. Archived from the original on June 26, 2008. Retrieved March 26, 2014.
- ^ "Jodi's Journal", The Globe Gazette, June 22, 2008
- ^ "Wife of former police chief sent Huisentruit journal to Globe". Globe Gazette. June 27, 2008. Retrieved April 13, 2016.
- ^ Kooiker, John (December 28, 2016). "Disappearance of Huisentruit remains troubling". The N'West Iowa Review. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
- ^ Miller, Ashley (March 16, 2018). "Mason City search warrant against person of interest in Huisentruit case remains sealed (with photos, video)". Mason City Globe Gazette. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
- ^ "Reward for information on Jodi Huisentruit's disappearance doubled to $50,000". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
- ^ Fisher, Bob (June 26, 2020). "25 years after she vanished, Jodi Huisentruit case is still active, still a mystery". Radio Iowa. Learfield News & Ag, LLC. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
- ^ AbbeyAbbey (May 27, 2020). "New Podcast Dedicated to Finding Jodi Huisentruit Launches June 5". 98.1 - Minnesota's New Country. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
- ^ "Jodi Huisentruit's Case to be focus of 20/20 report • Find Jodi Huisentruit". Find Jodi Huisentruit. January 26, 2022. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
- ^ "Jodi Huisentruit went missing in 1995. Friend hopes a $25K reward uncovers her remains". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
External links
- Findjodi.com – search for Jodi Huisentruit conducted by journalists and investigators
- Jodi Huisentruit at The Doe Network