Investigation Underway Following Reports Of Hacked Accounts Posting GoFundMe Pages For Jake Patterson
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Authorities in western Wisconsin say they are investigating reports of hacked Facebook accounts setting up crowdfunding pages for Jake Patterson, the man accused of kidnapping Jayme Closs and killing her parents.
The Douglas County Sheriff's Office says the hacked account of one girl from Gordon, Wisconsin, where Patterson kept Closs in a run-down cabin, is of particular concern, as the girl is now receiving online threats.
"These incidents will be investigated and violators prosecuted," the sheriff's office wrote in Tuesday Facebook post. "In the meantime, stop harassing this child."
Earlier this week, Patterson was charged with intentional homicide, kidnapping and armed burglary. His bail was set at $5 million.
According to a criminal complaint, the 21-year-old shot both of Jayme's parents in the head on Oct. 15 and abducted the child, whom he targeted after seeing her one day at a bus stop.
Patterson kept Jayme hidden at his Gordon home for 88 days, sometimes keeping her for hours under a bed for hours on end, penned in by laundry bins filled with weights.
Jayme escaped Pattson's home on Jan. 10. A woman walking her dog encountered the teenager asking for help and brought her to a neighbor's house. Patterson was arrested just minutes later, after Jayme gave them his name and a description of his car.
A GoFundMe account exists to help Jayme and her family as the 13-year-old recovers. So far, it's raised more than $22,000.