Search for Jayme Closs hits one-month mark, FBI expands surveillance search

It's nearly one month to the day since 13-year-old Jayme Closs disappeared from Barron County and the FBI is looking at new ways to expand the search.

Closs disappeared on October 15th when sheriff's deputies responding to a 911 call found her parents, James and Denise Closs, shot to death inside.

Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald says it’s been a frustrating and heartbreaking month but says investigators are still determined to solve the case.

“It's really frustrating, very frustrating,” said Fitzgerald. “We just want to bring a 13-year-old girl home.”

Fitzgerald said the department is still getting around 25 tips a day and wholeheartedly believes the one that will bring Jayme home is still out there.

“You think this is the tip! Then it turns out to be nothing or the person has an alibi or the person wasn't even in the state at the time of the incident but you think this could really be the one and it's not; it really brings you down,” explained Fitzgerald. “But, when you have that hope and drive in you to make it happen and bring Jayme home it makes it worth it.”

The department said more than 2,300 tips have been cleared and investigators aren’t giving up. The FBI is now expanding its video surveillance search beyond Barron County.

The FBI had previously collected around 80 surveillance videos from businesses and other locations in Barron. Now, it’s collecting footage from areas like on major highways.

“They're not looking for anything specific in this except maybe vehicle of interest, maybe someone that went into a gas station or maybe there was something suspicious so we don't know what we're going to find once they piece it together,” said Fitzgerald. “Once they make it into something for us to view then we'll be able to look at it and says, "Hey, let's go back and look at it for whatever reason."

The department said with hunting season starting this Saturday it's asking people to keep an eye out and search their properties for anything they believe may be out of place.

“We expect to get some calls, we've prepared for those calls, and it might be the one call that we need to make this case go wide open. We have staff on call and working to handle those calls but anything that's out of the ordinary on your property is something you should be looking for,” added Fitzgerald.

A Facebook post is circulating online that's asking people to turn on their front porch light in solidarity of the once month anniversary of Jayme’s disappearance Thursday night.

The department said the community support brings hope and anything that gives investigators a reason to work harder is worth it.

“When you drive around tomorrow night and see all these porch lights on it's going to be pretty special, it's going to bring hope,” said Fitzgerald. “I think there's hope out there and if that means leaving a porch light on and it gives our cops a smile on their face and make them work harder, let's do it.”