Overview
- Eleven‑year‑old Jacob Wetterling was taken while biking home in 1989 and remained missing until a suspect’s confession led police to his remains.
- A separate 1989 abduction and sexual assault of Jared Scheierl was linked by DNA to the same man during a cold‑case review.
- Authorities arrested Danny Heinrich on federal child‑pornography charges in 2015 and secured a plea that yielded his 2016 confession about Jacob.
- The new 20/20 episode and the documentary Echoes in the Night present fresh interviews with Patty Wetterling, Jared Scheierl and others and show Patty’s work co‑writing a book about the case.
- The coverage highlights how DNA forensics and federal charging choices resolved parts of the case while noting that a now‑changed 2021 Minnesota law removes the old statute of limitations for sexual violence.