Update-Podcast of Interview with DANA PRETZER
…”Your daughter seems to have vanished. We do not know how or why, and we really have nothing to go on.”
If you can possibly imagine hearing those words, which is exactly what Drew and Joyce Kesse were told about their missing daughter Jennifer in 2010. After an exhaustive and fruitless 4 + years searching for the 24 year old enterprising analyst for Central Florida Investments, the very agency tasked with reviewing the case gave the Kesse’s their latest emotional contusion.
…”I begged for an FBI review of the case, but at the time, I did not know that only meant that they would review the case and provide recommendations. I had always been told that the FBI was the best investigators out there. Those words rendered us despondent yet again.”- Drew Kesse
Island Girl
Jenn Kesse was in love. At 24, she owned her condo, made an excellent living just 2 years out of college and was contemplating the “big step” with her boyfriend of one year, Rob Allen.
Rob, an Englishman, lived in South Florida about two hours away from Jennifer. He had his own career successes and a prior marriage that left him gun shy.
The couple was at a crossroads, and the impromptu trip to St. Croix spent with friends and members of Rob’s family was an important one for the relationship.
Jenn phoned her family from the island, and was jubilant.
“…Dad, what kind of rum do you drink- I am in the shop and I don’t and I am in the store here and I want to bring you back something ..”
“Why are you calling me on your vacation and you do not need to bring us anything go enjoy yourself..”, Drew told his thoughtful first born.
While she was away, with her permission, Jennifer’s younger brother Logan Kesse was enjoying a male bonding endeavor at big sisters new condo in Orlando. Jenn gave Logan a set of keys over Christmas.
Logan’s posse et al traveled from the family home in Bradenton and arrived Friday January 20th.
The weekend was a great time had by all, the condo was restored to its pre-frat status and the worst kerfuffle was that Travis Bourguignon, childhood friend of both Jennifer and Logan, absently left his new work- issued cell behind.
Jenn and Rob returned to his home via Miami due to flight cancellations Sunday evening.
Jenn left Ft. Lauderdale straightaway Monday morning at 6am for the commute to her job in Ocoee.
She arrives by 8 , works a full day and is walking out of the building with her supervisor, John Willman, when she rings her family from her cell.
At 6:15 PM Jenn is on her cell with Mom and Dad while leaving the office. Logan chimes in to ask sis to FedEx Travis’s phone as he needs it for work. Jenn commits to sending it overnight the following day, she reminds him she had not even back to the condo to locate it yet.
Enroute to her condo at Mosaic at Millenia Jenn was gushing about her trip as each family member passed the phone.
This conversation will be the last time Jennifer’s family heard her voice.
As often happens during Caribbean rendezvous- things gelled for the couple, and they decided that they wanted to take the next steps and move in together. The “who and the where” to be decided upon return to their respective “real worlds”. The conversation about the “real world” began as Jenn spoke to Rob shortly after her family; the couple ended up in the familiar back and forth regarding who would have the easiest move and so forth.
At 9:57PM Jenn speaks to Rob on her landline for the last time.
When Jenn misses an 11:15 am meeting the following Tuesday morning, Joyce Kesse gets a call that Jenn did not make it in, and as every Mother very close to their daughter does, she knew.
Joyce Kesse knew immediately her child was in some sort of distress and in minutes had mobilized the family convoy to Orlando. They arrived at approximately 1:30 after calling the manager on the way and learning Jenn’s car was not there.
The Kesse’s would not leave it for 8 months as it became the Find Jennifer Kesse headquarters.
Upon arrival, Logan Kesse began banging and kicking doors in the Mosaic at Millenia condo complex he had spent last weekend. With very little occupancy, there were very little tenants, and even less information.
The Kesse’s discovered Jennifer’s shower was wet, a damp towel draped over the dryer, and her bed appeared as if she slept on one side with outfits described as “suitable for work” draped on the other.
Jenn’s duffle from her trip lay unpacked in the foyer. The pepper spray she had to remove from her keys due to flight regulations lay on the dresser she restored herself.
Her blow-dryer was on the vanity, her pj’s lay on the bath mat outside of the shower, the mail she retrieved when she got home from work stacked neatly on her counter.
3537 Conroy, Unit #2226 once the proud accomplishment of a beautiful and driven young woman, became a crime scene.
Perhaps.
Victimology 101- Low Risk
Jennifer Kesse was very close with her entire family, but she was a true Daddy’s girl. Mom and Dad mentored her through her car and home purchases, and Drew Kesse managed the punch list of her newly constructed abode. He made her ask the condo workers in her condo to put the white paint for the crown molding in a Tupperware for him and he would paint it himself- it was taking so long. Or, Dad and Mom welcomed the excuse to come and see her.
Jenn was most uncomfortable with the amount of landscapers and workers around the complex on a daily basis and shared those concerns openly.
Photobucket User Photo
What Jennifer was not open about and known only to her family and close friends, was that she was a four year Spanish major and she was beyond fluent.
She knew what sorts of misogynistic jeers were being shared between a sneering worker or two.
Jenn shared a great deal of personal and romantic information with her parents by all accounts and were in frequent daily contact. When Jenn told Drew she expressed her feelings of love to Rob Allen, and he did not “say it back”, she felt hurt. The trip with him was a definite test.
She felt the weight of the every- other-weekend commute for someone she had been dating almost a year was going to have to move forward or Jenn was considering moving on.
Jenn had also been approached by a vendor turned personal friend who was working with her to launch the companies new debit system- to consider going out on a romantic date with him.
Scott Stryker would have to cool his jets for now, Jennifer told him while they had a business relationship and she was currently in one , there was no chance of anything more.
In another Dad-Daughter chat, Jenn told Drew that she was having an issue with a co-worker who was overly fawning and complimentary, asking her out constantly. Jenn asked her dad his thoughts about the concept of just going out with a person to tell them that you were not interested in them, and if that was a kinder way than just saying no, where she stood to risk an interpersonal situation she did not want.
Drew advised Jennifer not to go on a date, but to agree to lunch and have the conversation in lighter setting, and that was the best she could do. In a follow up discussion between the two, Jenn told Drew she had done just that and it went fine.
Commensurate Panic
“She had a fight with her boyfriend, she took off, happens all the time, she will be back in a couple hours.- OPD detective”
The Kesse’s knew better. Rob Allen and Jenn’s best friend Lauren were at her condo by the afternoon and the people that knew her better than anyone were terrified; Jennifer was in trouble and panic set in.
While it was unknown until discovered 2 days later, a closed circuit camera catches an unknown suspect parking her 2004 black Chevy Malibu in the visitor spot at the Huntingdon On The Green apartments, approximately 1.2 miles away from her condo, at noon.
At approximately 7PM a missing person report was filed for Jennifer Joyce Kesse and a BOLO was dispatched by Orlando Police Department for her car.
On January 24, 2012 Jennifer Kesse will be missing for 6 years. In that time she has had a dozen detectives working on her case, it has been transferred to the Federal Bureau of Investigation at the Kesse’s request, and her case is being reviewed by the 8th review team tomorrow morning followed by a press conference arranged by Orlando Police Department and FDLE.
There have been numerous searches, both organized by the Kesse’s efforts as well as law enforcement which have not yielded a shred of evidence associated with Jennifer Kesse. Last week was the largest search effort to date.
This is largely due to the fact that the 2 detectives originally assigned to the case who retired on the same day 9 months in, never kept a single note. Not even a water-stained cocktail napkin with a smeared phone number. Nada.
Prevailing Theories For The Weary
Because Jennifer appeared to have slept in her bed and got ready for work, the prevailing theory has always been that she “at least got out the door” the morning of Tuesday January 24 and was abducted prior to getting to her car.
Water droplets in the tub at 1:30 PM notwithstanding, I have never understood why investigators seemed to be so married to this theory. In fact, in the few years I have known Drew Kesse through our respective advocacy work and mutual associations, it was not until a few months ago we ever discussed Jennifer’s case for that very reason.
I told Drew I would absolutely be willing to have my team’s resources look into Jenn’s case, but to be honest, I really didn’t believe I could offer any insights as I did not subscribe to the prevailing theory in the case. I have worked on cases before where that has been the situation and found it futile in progressing leads, which is of course the goal.
The last thing I want to do is upset the apple cart, and in my mind, this is a personal crime, not a random construction person or landscaper. The odds of Jennifer being abducted by a stranger in broad daylight at that hour, in full view of a handful of people in visual proximity, carrying her keys and a briefcase at her size, and with her physical strength does not jibe for me. It also does not even begin to touch the statistics that agree with my position.
I really think it is likely someone Jennifer knew. It might be someone she did not know well, or their intentions certainly, but everything I have ever reviewed on the case has not excluded that possibility for me.
Jenn is a low risk victim for a random and stranger perpetrated abduction, period.
His response to me was crisp. “Blink, I do not care about theories or whose they are, I just do not want to go in the ground without knowing what happened to my daughter- if you have a different thought or approach, there is nobody closed off to any possibility. We just want her found, it will be six years of Hell, and she deserves to come home.”
For the last 3 months the investigative team at www.blinkoncrime.com has analyzed thousands of documents, conducted numerous interviews of sources both willing and unwilling to discuss her case publicly in conjunction with on-location review.
Separating the wheat from the chaff would not come easy. But wheat we found.
Exclusively on www.blinkoncrime.com, all new facts in Jennifer’s disappearance are marked with an asterisk.
Random Abduction In Open Stairwell
Despite the fact that there were literally over 100 different workers on site, all of which would have been there by 7am when the bulk of the workday started for landscapers and contractors, neither saw nor heard anything unusual that morning. In fact, not one person interviewed remembers seeing Jennifer’s car* that morning upon arrival.
The door to Jennifer’s condo was locked with no sign of forced entry or any sort of scuffle in her home. Dishes in the dishwasher were clean*, and likely ran by Logan when he left, no dishes in the sink. (Editors Note: If you have not already, run your shower for 15 minutes at the showerhead trajectory of a 5’8” tall person and keep track of the time you can say with certainty you do not find water droplets. It should be noted of course that the assumption continues to be made that it was Jenn that actually showered.)
To my knowledge the only conclusive fact about when Jennifer Kesse was last in her apartment is that she spoke to Rob Allen on her landline to his cell phone at 9:57PM.
Well, that, and her phone was NOT in it* at 10:40PM when it’s power source was removed after pinging in a location intentionally being withheld by www.blinkoncrime.com.
Jenn’s condo was equipped with a working intrusion alarm*. She had disarmed it because Logan was visiting for the weekend. It was not* armed when the family arrived the afternoon she was discovered missing.
According to a source inside the management company servicing Mosaic at the time, they have never been asked to produce any sort of reporting* as to its settings by police.
In a conversation with the condo’s current owner, those records would no longer be available.
The ancillary objects pointing to Jennifer sleeping in her condo that night could just as easily reflect that she took a nap, showered and went out, or was roused from her bed by an unexpected visitor known to her.
Jennifer’s glasses* were located in the bathroom, not next to her bed.
Missing from her closet are her favorite taupe snake print pumps*
Found in Jennifer’s hamper was a man’s sweater* that does not belong to any known male associates of hers and is believed to fit no larger than a medium build individual.
Previously thought to be missing but discovered after being returned to the Kesse’s by OPD years later, was her brown pocketbook* she used on her trip. It had been packed in the duffel bag located on the floor in the foyer.
There were 2 workers that had access to work orders inside Jenn’s condo*. Both men were interviewed, agreed to take polygraph tests administered by the FBI and were subsequently cleared.*
To date, Jennifer’s keys, wallet, iPod, LG phone and briefcase are missing. Travis Bourgignion’s phone has never been recovered and pings from his phone confirm it ran out of power over the weekend.
2004 Chevrolet Malibu
#2226 parking spaces was located to the rear of the building which allowed those familiar with the complex to access the back entrance, which was not enclosed due to the construction.
Jennifer used the front entrance* that evening when returning from work to pick up her mail on the way in.
There was no sign of any foul play in either the exterior or interior of Jenn’s car.
Found on the floor of the front passenger side of her car were the flip flops she wore home from work that afternoon as well as a pair she wore in St. Croix.* Also found* were aspirin, her mail key, a business card, her sunglasses and cell charger (not plugged in and wrapped around the gear shift).
A DVD player for her bedroom given to her by Rob Allen and strapped in with the seatbelt was located in the backseat.
The Malibu was found locked in the lot of The Huntingdon On The Green apartments on January 26th.
It was removed at the request of OPD by a flatbed tow truck prior to CST processing, and prior to any assessment as to whether or not it was in working condition or impaired in some way, causing Jenn to need assistance.
As it was equipped with coded keys*, the suspect who parked it had to have Jennifer’s original key. Attempting to use a spare would have been rendered it inoperable.
Drew Kesse was never asked to provide a second coded key in his possession at the home in Bradenton so it is unclear how OPD was able to gain access and perform any necessary diagnostics.
Fatal Familiarity?
Distrust all those who love you extremely upon a very slight acquaintance and without any visible reason. – Lord Chesterfield
It is ironic that the initial LE theory was that Jenn was essentially pitching a fit over a boyfriend, but spent the bulk of early efforts running down the potential illegal alien and day-labor dujour angles.
The usual suspects were easy to clear- Rob’s cell was at his home and then work, where he was, but he agreed to and passed a polygraph test. The former boyfriend who was so devastated at the news of Jennifer’s disappearance he drank himself senseless for two weeks and was described as “inconsolable”-cleared. Vendors- cleared. Any and all known male associates-cleared.
Astonishingly, it was not until almost 3 and half years after Jennifer Kesse disappeared that the first of Jenn’s co-workers were interviewed. You read that sentence correctly.
Connections to completely unassociated cases (Grinstead) and abduction by a Dubai sheik theories were apparently the priority.
Occam and the good men and women of OPD assigned to this case are strangers, I fear.
In their defense, and I guess also by default, playing the hand they were dealt by the early detectives who apparently had developed their own secret decoder implements without sharing, was the wrong kind of flush.
As I began my interviews among colleagues of Jenn’s that would speak to me on the condition of anonymity only, I was repeatedly asked if I spoke to an individual by the name of Johnny Campos.
In a subsequent follow up interview with Drew Kesse, I asked him if he was familiar with that name.
“Yes, that is the guy I told you about that Jenn said was asking her out constantly and I told her to have lunch with and let him down easy that way instead of a date.
I remember because I asked her to repeat his name. I thought it odd for an adult businessman to go by the name “Johnny” at the office. I can’t remember what year, I think it was about 2 years ago, Joyce and I were at one of our sponsored events at the Mall and he introduced himself.”
I said, He introduced himself to you?
“Not to me, I was talking, but I saw him. He walked up to Joyce and said that he had worked with Jenn and that before she went missing the office had a secret Santa exchange where he got her name.
He bought her this ornament type thing, really beautiful, in a red velvet box thingie or stand that sat on her desk.”
I said, Didn’t OPD secure the things from her cube?
He answered, “I have no idea, he just said she kept it on her desk and he thought we should have it.”
Further interviews and investigation led me to Campos’s subordinate, who knew both Johnny Campos and Jenn Kesse.
In fact, he was stationed in the cubicle next to Jenn and what I learned next will undoubtedly be the WTF moment in this case.
Because of the open investigation and a probable civil litigation on behalf of this witness, I will refer to him as Adam Frank, which is not his real name. Frank’s statements to me have been independently verified or you would not be reading them here.
Adam had been working for Central Florida Investments for eight years before being fired for asking his bosses to investigate the alleged harassment perpetrated against him by his supervisor, Johnny Campos, since the day Jennifer Kesse disappeared. He believed it was because he knew specifics about them, and for what he told Orlando Police and subsequently the FBI, which was corroborated by the polygraph he requested to take.
After his superiors had met with OPD weeks earlier, In May 2009 Adam Frank received a subpoena served to him at the office in full view of his peers, to meet with FDLE the following week.
He told them the following (notes from our interview):
He was friends with Johnny. One time when he said to Jennifer in an email about work, but wrote at the last line she looked nice today, Johnny asked him why he would say that to her, was he interested in her? Adam told him that he was just being nice and asked him how he knew about it in the first place. Campos ignored the question. On another occasion, he had walked past Campos and Jenn in the hallway and they were laughing. He thought it was about him because of the email so he asked them, both replied absolutely no, and shared whatever they were laughing about; alleviating Frank’s angst.
It was short-lived, on Friday January 20th, upon learning of Jenn’s impromptu trip with her boyfriend, Campos was bending Adam’s ear like a wanna be jealous boyfriend. Campos told him that Jenn was a jerk for dating that Brit a-hole and other fill in the blank derogatory insults. Adam was uncomfortable and reminded Campos that Campos was a married man and he did not want anything to do with the conversation or get in the middle of whatever was going on; he needed his job.
Johnny Alberto Campos Facebook Pic
On Monday morning January 23rd, around 8am, Adam overhears Campos confront Jenn upon her return while in his cubicle, unbeknownst to them.
While I have the full statement of what was said between the two, in the interest of preserving case sensitive information I will provide a summary.
Campos confronted her about where she was and who she was with. Jenn responded she had a fantastic time, loved it and hated to leave; Campos was audibly and visibly perturbed. At no time did either become aware that Adam overheard the exchange.
At least not until he met with OPD for the second time in 2009 where they informed Adam that Campos had been interviewed based on his information. At this time, everything made sense to Adam as to what was going on since the day Jennifer disappeared.
When Campos showed up for work around noon on Tuesday January 24th appearing overtly nervous and pacing around, Frank thought he was acting strangely, but it did not escalate to “scary” until a few hours later where it was learned through the grapevine that Jenn Kesse might have been abducted. Campos is a supervisor and therefore not required to keep a timecard.
The next day, Wednesday January 25th, if you can believe it, proved to be even stranger.
Johnny Campos asks Adam to drive the pair to the new Westgate office at Lake Eleanor. Adam thought it bizarre since it was not either man’s responsibility to do such, but agreed.
It is not clear if Campos was without his 2000 blue Ford Taurus that day. On the way, Campos asked Adam how far his brother lived from there, the one with the vacant apartment next to his and if they could stop there and ask him if he heard anything.
During the drive Campos told Adam wherever she (Jenn) was, she was likely eaten up by alligators already.
Adam asked him not to say such things- Campos repeated it.
Adam and Campos stopped in at the lake Eleanor office , said hello to a few colleagues and headed back.
Over the next four years, until Adam Frank had the second meeting at HIS request with the FBI in an attempt to further allegations he felt were not being taken seriously by OPD, he claims Campos harassed him on the job relentlessly. Things were about to get worse. The FBI advised him if he was having problems at work over the issue, he should go to his superiors.
On January 19 2011, he did. In three subsequent internal meetings with varying levels of seniority Adam repeated his story about his treatment by his immediate supervisor and concerns for his physical safety if Campos was involved in what happened to Jennifer Kesse. He finally requested a meeting with John Willman and told him the events he was going through were making him physically ill and asked for his help to review and or expedite his complaint.
Three days later, Adam received a call from Willman where he told him his issues with Campos and the Kesse case were not good for the company and he would be terminated effective immediately. At no time was Frank ever told the status or outcome of his complaint against Campos. Johnny Campos is the only contemporary of Jennifer’s to maintain his position to date. Attempts to reach Mr. Campos and Mr. Willman for comment were not returned.
Ironically, Adam Frank files a grievance against Johnny Campos 5 years to the day he returned to CFI after a short stint in Lake County jail for ripping up a citation the morning of January 16th.
Campos was remanded to Lake County jail on bond, and after his wife posted the required $500 and a brief appearance on the 18th returned to work on the first day Jennifer Kesse was off; likely learning about her departure then.
The only known suspect in the disappearance is the individual that was recorded parking her vehicle.
The Kesse’s have been invited to a review of Jennifer’s case tomorrow morning at 9am, followed by the invitation to local media to ask questions on the status of the case from OPD and the Kesse’s.
Drew Kesse and Blink will be discussing the case on THE DANA PRETZER SHOW Wednesday January 18th at 9PM.
Check back to www.blinkoncrime.com for breaking developments to this story.
Jason Mateos and Jacqueline Beufort, contributing editors
Images by Klaasend
Kesse Photos courtesy of the Kesse Family