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Subscribe to RSSVermont police believe they have found the body of a beloved 33-year-old science teacher who went missing on Sunday. NECN's Jack Thurston reports.
Updated at 5:50 p.m. ET: Vermont police have confirmed that they have found the body of Melissa Jenkins, a 33-year-old school teacher who had been reported missing.
On Sunday evening, a friend of Jenkins went looking for her and found her Suzuki Grand Vitara a short distance from her home. The car was still running and Jenkins' 2-year-old son in the back seat. Jenkins was nowhere to be found.
Vermont state police say there were signs of a struggle but they wouldn't go into further detail.
On Monday afternoon, as Vermont state police searched along a remote road, they noticed a wooded section that appeared to have been disturbed.
After a brief search, detectives found a body in the woods.
Jenkins, a single mother, taught science and used to coach basketball at the prestigious St. Johnsbury Academy in Vermont, which counts former President Calvin Coolidge among its alumni. The boy's father, B.J. Robertson, would not comment on Jenkins' disappearance.
"She's got a real gift with students who either haven't liked science before or learning science doesn't come easy to them," headmaster Tom Lovett said. "She's got a real gift with them."
Between 100 and 200 students gathered at the academy Monday night after the news came out that a body had been found, the Associated Press reported. Classes were canceled Tuesday; a vigil was scheduled for that evening.
Jenkins grew up in Danville, a tight-knit town west of St. Johnsbury where she attended the Danville School, the AP reported.
Violent crime is rare in this part of Vermont, the AP reported.
In September 2010, Pat O'Hagan, a 78-year-old grandmother, disappeared from her home in Sheffield, about 20 miles north of St. Johnsbury. Her body was found almost a month later about 10 miles from her home in Wheelock.
Police have ruled the death a homicide, but no arrests have been made. Authorities have not said whether they believe Jenkins' case is connected.
After an extensive missing persons search that lasted less than 24 hours, police have now focused all of their attention on searching for Jenkins’ killer.
“Although I cannot disclose the details of how the body was found, or the condition of the body, this death is considered suspicious,” an official said.
A family friend said Jenkins left her home that night to meet up and help someone out.
"She would do anything for anybody. She definitely will be greatly missed," Ron Craig, of Peacham, told the Associated Press.
Craig, who said he and his wife occasionally babysat Jenkins' son, said it's scary that police did not know if this was an isolated incident. "We've been locking our doors all the time because you just don't know what's going to happen," he said.
Police believed the crime occurred sometime between 7 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. Sunday night.
NBC station WHDH and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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I saw this on the news yesterday, and I was shocked, I used to LIVE in this town, I now live 25 minutes away from there!....You never here of this stuff in VT, I just don't know what is wrong with some people, I can't sleep at night anymore...I feel so bad for her little boy, I just couldn't imagaine, it's aweful that these things have to happen.
What do you mean you never hear of this stuff in Vermont? Have you been watching the news over the years? I used to live in Vermont and when I left there were over a dozen people missing, suspected of being abducted. 2 girls driven off the road disappeared, an old lady abducted out of her house, and even a couple abducted out of their home, are just a few of the cases that I remember. How about the 2 girls abducted, raped, and murdered - one by her own relatives! There is something going on in Vermont that is making these crimes possible and I suspect the citizenry's denial that it's even happening has a lot to do with it.
SMM6917,
You will find other Vermonters in this "discussion." (I am one.) I think the whole state feels as you do. We will take care of our own!
Mandy-373903,
We Vermonters are ~625,000 people. Unlike larger states/population centers, EVERY horrendous crime is big news here... from Bennington to the NEK. "Denial" has nothing to do with it.
. "There is something going on in Vermont that is making these crimes possible...."
I am a Vermonter and I say you are TROLLING.
Just putting this out there for thought, but if the father 'did' it, why was the child still in the car? Wouldn't he have taken the child with him then? He doesn't know how long that child would be left in the car...
Yeah, good point I suppose. But then again, if he was a killer I dont think he has much in the way of morals.
Yet another day and another news story about a woman being found....what animals lurk in this world? Men...Ladies, always be safe...I know at times we are vulnerable....This is yet another example of the war on women....I am thinking there really is a genectic flaw with men...really....way too many walking this earth just waiting to do damage....scary....be safe people. I am sorry for the community who lost a lovely person and her child....
another "vegetarian" heard from. Wor on women (or is it womyn?) my arse.
I heard a horrible statistic the other day. At any given moment there are over 20,000 women between the ages of 18 and 50 missing in the US each year. And of those, less than 1% left of their own volition, including runaways, drug addicts, hookers, and women suffering mental illness. That's a scary stat that is sure to have many women looking over their shoulders. I know I am, and I'm also going to always trust my intuition. If something doesn't feel right, it isn't.
Little boy still in car? I would start question the boy father,then question some boys in school,that she may of had close contact with helping them and going beyond call of being a good teacher! Sounds fishy to me.They let the little boy unharmed and in the car.Ask the little boy who killed his mommy,he's 2 and if he like my 2 yr. old he should be very smart and can talk plain and understand what's going on around them. Unless the little boy was asleep in the car,then I would ask the little boy what happen. Also my first suspect would be the boy's father.Start your investigation with him first and find out his where abouts and so forth. Little boy will truly miss his mommy.God Bless that little baby boy,my heart go out to him.May she rest in peace,after she haunts the hell out of her killer.
I read another article about this incident and it stated that the teacher also worked as a waitress at night at a local restaurant. It would seem that this was not a property crime ( as they could have taken the victims car), not sure if any other items were missing such as jewelry, cash, etc. It could have been a staged abduction or an actual abduction for alterior motives (sexual assault, murder by a known perp, or murder for hire). It would seem that whomever was responsible, they had a geographic knowledge of the area most likely indicating that it was a local person. As it seems likely that this crime was not witnessed, evidence and establishment of motive will be key elements in solving this crime. Extensive interviews of those within and those on the periphery of the victims circle of friends, relatives, neighbors, co-workers, and students might prove fruitful in establishing a list of persons of interest. It would be good if it could be determined that anyone had anything to gain by the death of the victim as a possible motive. I think this case will be solved relatively quickly and that the responsible party will be local and known to the victim.
that was done before monday morning
Concerned criminal - Hardly, things don't move quite that quickly in processing a crime scene, analysis of evidence, and interviewing potential witnesses or informants. I do agree that this case will be solved relatively quickly, but not at the warp speed you suggest.
I was there, i was acquainted with the victim. My girlfriend got a call Monday at 2 am. Don't hardly me.
If she was a waitress than that makes 3 waitresses that were abducted in Vermont over the past several years. Something tells me there is a serial killer in Vermont that the police don't want to alarm people about.
Concerned Criminal - You may have been "there", and the fact that you know the victim and your girlfriend got a call at 02:00 hrs. does not make you privy to all the incatracies of the case, nor everything that is being done by law enforcement and the timeline on which those things are accomplished. I am sorry for the loss to you, your girlfriend, and to the community. My post was intended to minimize that which you know. It is my hope that anyone responsible for this crime is apprehended and brought to justice quickly.
Well if she was any younger I'd suspect Casey Anthony was involved.
What kind of a moron are you, to make a joke about this horrific incident?
Only slightly less dumb than you to take everything so seriously.
funny as a crutch.
there's a reason why they always look at the spouse, in many cases, they're the one who's guilty!
This guy's probably innocent, but he will be the first person they look at
Sounds like an attemped carjacking case to me. (or maybe made to look like one) Never rule out the ex-husband(the car would have been found soon and the boy was safe in his car seat) Sad.
car jacking in Danville VT? ya right this is the town where people don't lock their front doors let alone their car doors. Most people here are quite neighborly. I dont think a lot of you understand the dynamics of this region. This is not a place where you see strange faces. everyone knows everyone and everyone's business. This was clearly personal. Probably a local. The attack site, Goss hollow rd. is not a place you see pedestrians. it is a dirt road cut off. there are no stop signs or street lights. If someone was planning on a car jacking there they are pretty dumb. The dump site, Cumerford Dam, is also a very popular place for the youth of the area to party without getting caught (trust me i use to drink beer there every weekend in highschool). Someone who is not from around here would never find cumerford damn or Goss Hollow rd for that matter. It was clearly someone she knew who was from he area.
Vermont is a special place for... omg, so many reasons. A lot of reasons.
I really, REALLY hope the (above and below) posters never move to Vermont. Clearly, they don't "get" us. And if for some reason they (the "jump-in-without-facts-types") do come here... may they never "feel at home."
As a Vermonter, I was waiting for facts... which we now have.
Vermont is YES, special; but we are not immune to "sickos." HEY, rest of you: it was a SICKO!
Could ANYONE have seen this? (Who "saw" Ted Bundy?)
That's my "rant."
Hang em high .
Way sad- someone deffinetly targeted her...~ it's a messed up world we live in.
Hopefully he was asleep at the time. At that age my children usually fell asleep in the car with a motor running, especially at night. So glad to read he wasn't injured. It sounds pretty bad considering they are unable to make a positive identification on the young lady until an autopsy is done and she has been missing such a short period in time.
This is the saddest thing I've read in a while. My heart goes out to her child, who may have witnessed something to awful to even think about. I hope they are able to find whoever did this and that justice is served. My condolences to the family.
This obviously wasn't a pre-mediated, planned-out crime, given the details listed to this point. If she was heading out to help someone, then phone records should identify who called her prior to her leaving. In addition, as pointed out above, if she did indeed put up a struggle, then hopefully there will be hair and/or skin under her nails and on her person that can be identified with DNA - maybe even blood as well if she were to have scratched her assailant.
The vehicle wasn't taken for the simple fact that once she was reported missing, there would've been an APB put out for it. That doesn't mean that she wasn't carjacked, although we'll have to wait and see what, if anything, was taken from her (jewelry, wallet, cash, etc.) And to assume that the perp had "feelings" which is why the child wasn't harmed...more than likely he/she didn't want to take the child as it would draw attention and would be hard to keep up with, and if it were indeed a robbery, then having the child places the perp at the scene.
Let the forensics experts do their job, and I would imagine, as sloppy as this case seems, there will be a suspect here real soon.
Y'all are right. Leaving that child in the car was evil. Killing his mom was beyond even that.
Chris - it's almost always the father or the boyfriend or the ex-husband. To paraphrase Willie Sutton: "you go where the money is".
Something is going on in Vermont and New Hampshire - well over a dozen people missing and never found. I suspect she was found because she put up a fight and was killed as a result. The poor thing was probably panicking that her child was alone in a running car. I lived in Vermont and now live somewhere else. While living there several young girls were abducted, an elderly lady, and even a couple disappeared. They never found any of these people. I always suspected that it was someone posing as a cop or was a cop because too many times (as in the cases of the missing girls) it seemed the person was pulled over. Baring an accident, who could make a person pull over but a person posing as/or an authority figure. But, since in all these cases there was no evidence of an accident or break down, that was ruled out. Hate to say it but I think some type of monitoring should be put up on some of the most isolated roads. I know how dangerous those roads can be because they are so isolated. And worse yet, a lot of the roads still don't have cell towers because environmentalists are against them. So even if you are stopped or break down, you have no option but to be at the mercy of strangers. Really scary. I'm so glad I no longer live there and was transfered to a city.
Is it possible that she was driving along, saw someone in need, pulled over to help the wrong person- she may have left her car running with the child inside to keep him warm- there are so many scenarios that could have happened here- very sad story
everybody wants to blame some guy for it. well i have known some bulldykes that were just as tough as a lots of you guys on here. i got into a fight with a dyke during boot camp and she almost whipped my ass. and i haven"t lost many street fights. so anything is possible. so people keep an open mind
Another good one taken. She knows her baby is safe. We can be thankful for that.
An extreme event can be observed and remembered by the very young. I can verify that, as I remember
such an event. I was still in diapers, and the memory is implanted in my brain. If the killer's face was seen
by the toddler, chances are a photo or the person may be remembered by the child.
Very tragic. It's unforgivable to take a life without cause but even more so when it's a parent, as you're taking away from the child for the rest of their life.
While there is a small percentage of people who can recollect memories from when they are infants and toddlers - I am actually in that small percentage and have participated in three studies in the last five years UCBerk and City College SF - he is not likely to remember much without help of photographs and video if he is not in that percentage. If he is someone with this type of memory he will be lucky to remember her voice, face and possibly smell. But sadly that is not likely.
It is a true crime to steal this boys time with his own mother and any future he would have had with her. It will unfortunately shape the rest of his life.
Danville and St. Johnsbury are a tiny village and small city or town respectively. Many people move to Vermont to avoid crime. This must be shocking the socks off the residents of that area which is remote, removed, peaceful and beautiful. I hope they find the monster that destroyed this little boy's mother. All the people with uncontrolled rage impulse are suspect.
it shocked us to the bone, when stuff like this happens somewhere else people say "thats why i live where i live"
Women now have to be careful when they go to hang out with men who do not know. Believing they are on the same night quiren modern sex and bad for many people stuck in there for killing drug that kills. Alert women Take care with those crazy nights do not expect you want it more.
venecom22
. "Women now have to be careful when they go to hang out with men who do not know."
What??? Why are you making up facts that put (in any way) blame on the victim?
I am a Vermonter and I think you are a TROLL.
It is very stange that the little boy was left in the car, even odd.
@Cherokee: This happens all the time during carjackings. A thug carjacks the car, realizes there is a kid in back and dumps the car somewhere. They only want the car. and the fact that the car was left running which was probably good because the heater was on for the kid and they just ran off.
Who's to say she's not a prostitue?!?! Wtf'n hell? You are a real POS! Get a @!$%#ing life you creep!