Almost 10 years after she went missing, one Orlando woman’s parents are making a renewed call for leads.



"We will never give up our search to find Jennifer [Kesse],” said Orlando Police Chief John Mina.

At a news conference at Orlando Police Headquarters Friday, Jennifer Kesse’s parents wiped away tears.

"We need to have the public understand that Jennifer, after 10 years…” began Drew Kesse.

“…is still missing,” her mother, Joyce, finished.

“We’re still waiting for that one person to come through with that one bit of information to bring Jennifer home,” the father said.

Kesse was last seen at her condo, Mosaic, by Mall at Millenia on January 24, 2006. She was 24 years old.

After her disappearance, police released grainy surveillance video of her car being parked by another person at a complex one mile away. That person was never identified, and over the years, thousands of tips, including one last month that brought investigators to Biscayne Bay, have not panned out.

But, detectives have not given up.

"We are hoping that new testing methods and technology will result in new leads,” said Detective Teresa Sprague with the Orlando Police Department.

Sprague said as DNA testing continues to evolve, they can re-test old evidence. They’re currently focusing on the items within the missing woman’s car, holding the belief that the answer to her abduction is tied to the vehicle.

After Kesse disappeared from the Conroy Road condo complex 10 years ago, her case drew national attention. Yet here in Central Florida, Kesse’s case is only one of several involving women who vanished without a trace.



The Kesse case is one of three high profile disappearances in Central Florida in the last 10 years. Tracy Ocasio (center) disappeared in 2009. Michelle Parks (right) disappeared in 2011.

In 2009, Tracy Ocasio was 27 years old when surveillance video caught her and James Hataway leaving a bar in Metrowest at 1:30 a.m. Her car was found abandoned the next day, but Ocasio never turned up.

Two years later, another woman, Michelle Parker, went missing. Parker had appeared with her ex-fiance Dale Smith on an episode of “The People's Court.”

Since her disappearance, Parker's family has been fighting to see the Orlando woman's children, even filing the first grandparents' rights petition in the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court this past November.

As for Kesse's family, the quest for answers continues -- and the call for justice remains unanswered.

"Jennifer needs you, and Jennifer needs the public more than any time before,” Drew Kesse said, “Because we know more than one person knows what happened to Jennifer more than 10 years ago."

Detectives in the Kesse case say they still get tips at least once a week – and they do investigate them. They hope that Friday’s refresher will jog someone's memory and lead to a credible tip into the woman's abduction.

If you know anything about the whereabouts of Jennifer Kesse, Tracy Ocasio or Michelle Parker, you can call Crimeline anonymously. Call 1-800-423-TIPS (8477).