Nearly 30 years after Iowa news anchor Jodi Huisentruit disappeared, a random tip led police to search a construction site near where new apartments are being built.

It was hoped that the new search for Huisentruit’s body could lead to a major breakthrough.

Last month, investigators searched an area of ​​Winsted, Minn., a rural town northwest of the Twin Cities, as part of their investigation.

“This is the first public activity in years,” said former journalist Caroline Lowe. The Independent. “We’re looking at what we can do as journalists, because we know what’s being covered, and we’re diggers – we want to find out what happened to him.

“It’s also up to us to do what we can to keep it visible. She’s one of us. She is part of our extended family. We owe it to him to help bring her home.

But weeks after the search, Lowe received a damning update from Winsted Police Chief Justin Heldt, who confirmed that no human remains were found during the search — only animal remains farm, which would be quite common in a rural area like Winsted.

Investigators did not reveal what information drew them to the construction site and said only that they were following a lead in Jodi’s case.

“MCPD recently worked with Minnesota law enforcement to follow up on a lead in Winsted,” Mason City Police Chief Jeff Brinkley said in a statement.

Huisentruit was in the parking lot of her apartment complex in Mason City, Iowa, on July 27, 1995, on her way to the morning newscast on KIMT-TV, but she was kidnapped and never seen again been seen or heard.

Nearly 30 years after Iowa news anchor Jodi Huisentruit disappeared, a random tip led police to search a construction site near where new apartments are being built.

Police found Huisentruit’s red high-heeled shoe next to her car before her kidnapping

“MCPD continues to regularly receive, evaluate and follow up on information it receives regarding the disappearance of Jodi Huisentruit. Information gleaned from this effort will be used in the ongoing investigation.

“Information gathered through these efforts will be used in the ongoing investigation,” Brinkley said. “At this time there is no additional information to make public.

He further stated, “We would like to encourage anyone with information regarding Jodi’s disappearance to contact MCPD or the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.”

Winstead is a town located just 45 miles west of the Twin Cities metro and has a population of 2,240, according to a 2020 census.

Huisentruit was in the parking lot of his apartment complex in Mason City, Iowa, on the morning of July 27, 1995.

The 27-year-old was about to anchor the morning news on KIMT-TV, but suddenly disappeared into thin air.

The police chief said the Mason County Police Department worked with Minnesota law enforcement officials to follow up on the investigation in Winsted.

Only one person was considered a person of interest.

Last month, investigators searched an area of ​​Winstead, Minnesota, a rural town northwest of the Twin Cities. The research focused on a construction site of an apartment building

Huisentriut pictured hosting the 6 a.m. newscast

Huisentruit was in the parking lot of his apartment complex in Mason City, Iowa, on the morning of July 27, 1995, and on his way to present the morning news.

John Vansice, who was 50 at the time and was friends with Huisentruit, told police he was the last person to see her alive.

She had come to his house the night before to watch a birthday video, but insisted he was not involved in her disappearance.

The morning she disappeared, the station producer called her apartment and woke her up.

She said she would soon be there for her 6 a.m. newscast which would be broadcast live. The train station was about a kilometer and a half from her house.

Her co-workers were worried when the hours passed and she didn’t arrive. They called the police to request a social check.

When officers arrived at the Key Apartments in Mason City, Iowa, they found red high heels, a hair dryer, earrings and hairspray scattered near her car.

They believe she was abducted about 20 minutes after leaving her apartment building and next to her car parked about 12 steps from the entrance to her apartment building.

Next June will mark 30 years since Jodi’s disappearance, but few details have been revealed and what happened to her remains a mystery.

Despite years of investigation, the case went cold and Jodi was pronounced dead in 2001.

There has been speculation in the past that whoever took Jodi may have been stalking her.

Investigators did not say what information led them to search the construction site last month, but confirmed they were following a lead in Jodi’s case.

During the struggle with her captor, the key to Jodi’s red 1991 Mazda Miata was slightly bent.

Police said there was “evidence of a fight outside the building.” They also found a “partial palm print” on the car.

However, there are no eyewitnesses to the kidnapping and no surveillance cameras to record what happened.

Some neighbors reported hearing a scream around 4:30 a.m., but no one called the police.

Very little forensic evidence was found at the crime scene and the case was eventually dropped.

In 2001, Huisentruit was legally declared dead.

Jodi Huisentruit was 27 years old when she was kidnapped. In June, she would have been 56 years old

Jodi disappeared after failing to show up to her job at a news station in Mason City, Iowa.

Jodi Huisentruit was from Long Prairie, Minnesota and described herself as a “hometown girl.” One of the local shopkeepers decorated his store window for Christmas 1996 with a painting of her.

Jodi Huisentruit’s apartment in Mason City, Iowa, where she was kidnapped

Two years later, friends and former colleagues Josh Benson and Gary Peterson created the nonprofit FindJodi, Inc. to keep the young woman’s memory alive and help solve the case.

Huisentruit’s case has since become one of Iowa’s biggest murder mysteries.

In April 2023, co-founder Peterson died at age 81. Its co-founder Josh Benson wrote a tribute to Peterson on the FindJodi webpageand shared how heartbroken he was by her passing.

“I met Gary in 2002 in Austin, Minnesota. He was my first TV news boss at KAAL-TV. We hit it off immediately,” Benson wrote.

“We both discovered we shared a passion for missing persons cases, and six months later we delved into the disappearance of Jodi Huisentruit.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Mason City Police Department at (641) 421-3636, Iowa DCI Special Agent Ryan Herman at [email protected] or to contact FindJodi.com.