Jake Patterson Pleads Guilty to Charges Related to Jayme Closs’ Kidnapping and Her Parents’ Murder

On Tuesday, March 27, Jayme Closs‘ accused kidnapper Jake Patterson plead guilty during a court hearing in Barron County, according to local ABC News affiliate WXOW. Patterson, who is also being accused of killing Closs’ parents, plead guilty to two charges of first-degree intentional homicide and one charge of kidnapping.

Patterson, 21, took a plea deal that would dismiss his charge of Armed Burglary charge, but it can still be considered at sentencing. Any charges from Douglas County were also dismissed as part of the agreement.

The Wisconsin native was charged with the October murder of James and Denise Closs and the kidnapping of their 13-year-old daughter, Jayme. Jayme was missing for 87 days when she was miraculously found alive 70 miles north of her family’s home in Gordon, Wisconsin back in January.

Since then, Jayme’s aunt Jennifer Smith took her in and the teen has slowly been trying to adjust back into her normal, daily routine after the harrowing ordeal she had to endure. “Jennifer’s over-the-moon happy, very happy to be with Jayme. She’s an extremely strong woman. She never lost hope in finding her,” family friend Michelle Saffert previously told In Touch.

As for Patterson, he’s remained in custody ever since his arrest in January. In one of his letters to a friend from prison obtained by Radar Online, Patterson seemed to joke about his crimes.

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“It’s weird,” Patterson wrote. “I went from never committing a crime or really doing anything bad to doing the worst thing a human can do. Just one big f–-k up ha ha.”

He also seemed to hint at the type of relationship he had with the 13-year-old while he held her captive, adding hearts around her name and reminiscing on his time spent with her.

“My brother… got a puppy named ‘Vale’ a couple of weeks before [heart] Jayme [heart] ran away,” he wrote. “I love Mexican food too, but I like lots of stuff. Chocolate and berries are probably my favorite. Me and Jayme cooked a bunch of stuff. Cooking is another thing I like doing a lot.”