Naman Shrestha
In 1989, the entire community of the Paynesville, Minnesota, area was shell-shocked when Danny Heinrich abducted and sexually assaulted two pre-teen boys, Jared Scheierl and Jacob Erwin Wetterling, in January and October 1989, respectively. While Jared was let go by the perpetrator, Jacob’s remains were eventually discovered. It took the detectives decades to get to the bottom of the case and link Danny to the horrific crimes. ABC’s ’20/20: Where Are You, Jacob?’ chronicles Danny’s crimes and how the investigators brought him to justice.
Danny Heinrich Was Apprehended For His Sexual Crimes Decades Later
Born around 1963, Danny James Heinrich grew up in Annandale, Minnesota, alongside his brother, David Heinrich. In his 20s, Danny committed at least two child abductions and sexual assaults in Stearns County, Minnesota, which he confessed to later. On January 13, 1989, Danny targeted Jared Scheierl, a 12-year-old he kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and physically threatened in Cold Springs. Holding the boy at gunpoint, he ordered him to run away without looking back. Months later, on the night of October 22, 1989, a masked and armed Danny ambushed 11-year-old Jacob Erwin Wetterling on a rural road in St. Joseph, Minnesota, while he was returning home from a convenience store with his brother, Trevor Wetterling, and a friend named Aaron Larson.
Coming out of a driveway, Danny held the trio at gunpoint and asked them their age. He let Trevor and Aaron go, telling them that they would be shot if they looked back. He then drove Jacob to a gravel pit near Paynesville, where he admitted to sexually assaulting him. After hearing a police car nearby, Danny pulled out his revolver, shot Jacob to death and proceeded to bury him. About a year later, he admittedly returned to the burial site of Jacob and moved the remains to a nearby site when he noticed the boy’s jacket was exposed.
In December 1989, Danny was reportedly questioned by the police, who also collected a DNA sample from him. Since they lacked evidence against him at the time, he was allowed to leave. However, decades later, in 2015, Danny was linked to Jared’s abduction and sexual assault as his DNA matched the sample found on the clothing Jared was wearing during the assault. Although the statute of limitations on Jared’s assault had expired by then, Danny was arrested on October 28, 2015, and charged with possession of child pornography after the authorities found about 19 three-ring binders full of child pornography and VHS tapes in his home.
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Danny Heinrich is Currently Incarcerated at a Massachusetts Prison
As part of his plea allocution post-arrest, Danny Heinrich confessed to the abduction and sexual assault of Jared Scheierl. In early September 2016, he also admitted to abducting, sexually assaulting, and killing Jacob Wetterling and led the detectives to the site where he had buried his remains. In exchange for his confessions and revealing the burial site, the prosecution agreed to drop the murder charge against him. On September 6, 2016, he pleaded guilty to federal child pornography charges. More than two months later, on November 21, his sentencing hearing took place. Danny took the stand and apologized to his victims’ families and friends, stating, “I am truly sorry for my evil acts that I have done against victims and their family, and the shame I brought on myself and my family.”
Danny added, “The suffering and pain they have spoke today I will always remember. Mr and Mrs. Wetterling: the heinous acts, the selfishness are unforgivable for what I have taken away from you.” Jacob’s mother, Patty Wetterling, also stated, “He broke my heart, my soul and every fiber of my being when he murdered our Jacob. My heart hurts for my children… for Aaron… who kept waking up and realizing it wasn’t a nightmare.” Ultimately, Danny Heinrich was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison and a term of supervised release for life. As of today, the 63-year-old is serving his sentence at Federal Medical Center, Devens, in Worcester County, Massachusetts, with his release date scheduled for December 2032 or 2033.
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