Kidnap suspect eyed in Mich. mom's unsolved disappearance
NORTON SHORES, Mich. -- Police say a man charged last week with kidnapping in the attempted abduction of a Michigan girl is now a person of interest in a mother's long-unsolved disappearance in the same area, reports CBS affiliate WWMT.
Jeffrey Willis was charged last week with attempting to abduct a teenage girl in April. The teen told police she got lost walking home in Muskegon, when a man pulled over, offered her his cell phone and ultimately forced her inside his van.
The Detroit Free Press reports that the teen told police she jumped from the moving van, and ran bloody and barefoot in search of help.
When Willis was found, police discovered multiple syringes in his van filled with what is believed to be a sedative, as well as handcuffs and rope.
Local media soon noted that the van seemed to match the description of the one sought in the April 26, 2013 disappearance of Jessica Heeringa, 25, who was abducted from a gas station in Norton Shores, about five miles away from the recent abduction attempt.
At first, officials warned against jumping to conclusions, but late Monday afternoon, Norton Shores Police officially identified Willis as a person of interest in the Heeringa case.
Heeringa was working alone at the gas station when she disappeared. Willis has not been charged in the case.