Author: Shane Lambert
Original Time of Writing: December 22nd, 2020
All articles are subject to editing after the original posting.
Jessica Heeringa: Missing Person Case Overview
Missing Person: Jessica Heeringa
NamUs # and Link: #MP20137
Ethnicity/Race: White
Sex: Female
Age at time of disappearance: 25 years old
Hair: strawberry blonde, shoulder length
Eye color: Blue
Height and weight at the time of disappearance: 5'1", 100 to 110 pounds
Other: One of her eyes was lazy. She had a tattoo on her left ankle of a musical note and a peace sign. She had a star tattoo on her back. Also, she had sleepy z's tattooed on her left foot. Lastly, on her right calf she had a sun and moon tattoo.
Clothing: High-heeled boots, polo shirt with "Sternberg Exxon," blue jeans, and a black tank top.
Details of Jessica Heeringa’s Disappearance
Last seen or contact date: April 26th, 2013 (Friday) late in the evening, likely between 1050pm (time of her last sale as a clerk) and 1115pm. She may have been behind the building as a small drop of her blood was found there.
Where last seen: in Norton Shores, Michigan. She was working at an Exxon Mobil gas station as a clerk at the location that was on East Sternberg Road. The gas station was between Grand Haven Road and Highway 31. Google Maps: 43.15449809998207, -86.21656688503997.
Jessica Heeringa has been missing from Norton Shores in Michigan since April 26th, 2013. She was working at an Exxon Mobil station as a clerk. A customer, no later than 1120pm, found the gas station open but no one was around. She disappeared late in her shift, leaving her personal belongings in the store -- including $400 in her purse. The station did not have surveillance. One early article that was published a few days after her disappearance is snipped below.
Investigation into the Abduction
This case was treated as an abduction since an early part of the investigation. In the early coverage, they communicated interest in questioning a white male with a silver Chrysler minivan (sometimes called a van). The cash register was untouched so this didn't look like a robbery gone wrong.
The witness in the case was an off-duty employee, a woman who drove by the Exxon store. She noticed a van behind the store and circled back. I think she may have been the one that gave the description that lead to a composition sketch of the suspect and the report of the van.
Evidence of the Silver Minivan
The van was thought to have been captured in other footage from businesses in the area. This suspicious van may have passed Coin Zone on Grand Haven Road at about 11:04pm. They also had a video from a tavern, one that also allegedly showed the vehicle in question.
Jeffrey Willis: Suspect and Conviction
The person of interest in the case was Jeffrey Willis, now convicted. At the time of writing, he was in prison for a separate crime that involved killing a female jogger in western Michigan. Willis is a reasonable match to the composite sketch that was generated of the driver of the minivan.
Jessica Heeringa Sat, Dec 28, 2019 – A5 · Detroit Free Press (Detroit, Michigan) · Newspapers.com
Search for Jessica Heeringa’s Remains
There is some closure in this case in the sense that her abductor has been brought to justice. However, Jessica remains a missing person. On that matter, her direction of travel could be speculated on.
Coin Zone, the name of the company that had the footage of the vehicle in question, is permanently closed at the time of writing. However, I found an address of 4300 Grand Haven Road in North Shores for the expired business. There's a possibility that Jessica was in this vehicle, meaning her direction of travel was northern from her last known location.
Jessica's distinctive physical characteristics, listed below, are not likely to aid in this investigation. If we assume that she is long dead then her tattoos and lazy eye would not be ascertainable should a Jane Doe be found that might be her (decomposition). Her short height of 5'1" is what should be remembered in this case, as well as the distinctive clothing that was wearing.
Possible Burial Locations and Manistee National Forest Theory
There is some reason to believe that she was buried near Sheridan Road and Laketon Road "near abandoned railroad tracks." However, leads on this tip have not been fruitful.
In a significant development, Retired Norton Shores Police Department Lt. Michael Kasher said he believes she’s buried in the Manistee National Forest near the Lake-Mason county line, northwest of Baldwin, about a 90-minute drive from Norton Shores. This theory is based on cellphone data from Jeffrey Willis, showing movement north on US-31 and east on M-46 two days after her disappearance (Source: WOOD TV8, Author: Ken Kolker). Despite extensive searches, her remains have not been found.
How Construction Sites May Hold Clues
If she is buried in the area, then future amateurs working on this case could note any human remains at future construction sites in the area. An area that may have been secluded in 2013 might be developed at a future date. Sometimes construction workers unearth human remains as they lay groundwork for foundations and that's where the strongest likelihood of finding her may be.
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