NORTON SHORES, Mich. -- Sunday marks two years since Jessica Heeringa disappeared. The 25-year-old vanished while working the night shift at a gas station in Norton Shores.
She was working alone, and investigators believe someone abducted her. The case is at a standstill. The gas station where she went missing has since changed ownership and its name. However, the appeal is still out there for anyone who knows anything to come forward.
“It’s a nightmare, and I think everybody in the family continues to have bad dreams about it," Diane Homrich, Heeringa's grandmother told FOX 17.
She added, "You’re just horrified to think what she might still be going through after two years."
From the gray van spotted in the area, to the sketch of a man who police believe may have been involved, tip after tip has lead investigators nowhere.
“In this day and age, everybody has a cell phone with a camera. They take pictures of everything, including what they had for breakfast. But yet, nothing showed up as far as Jessica is concerned," Homrich said.
Every minute of everyday the grandmother's mind is pre-occupied wondering about her granddaughter.
“When [I'm] out and about, I’m always looking. I’m not exactly sure what I’m looking for... if it’s her. If we’re going down the expressway, I’m watching vehicles that go by. Especially vans," she explained.
"Every once in a while, you hear where somebody gets rescued because they saw a woman with her nose pressed against a window saying, ‘Help me.’ So you just never know," Homrich said.
Heeringa's son, Zevyn, was a toddler went she went missing. He's now 5 years old. The pain is no less severe.
“Like he said to us the other day, his heart is breaking," Homrich recalled.
Lieutenant Michael Kasher said disappointedly, "I don’t have the answer, any more closer to the answer than what happened there 26th of April 2013."
The case’s dead ends are just as frustrating for him. The detective said he would have expected Heeringa to be home safe by now and a criminal trial completed.
Kasher said the department still gets about 10 tips a week. But just how far do these tips extend?
“That’s a good question because we haven’t had that question. It’s taken us up to Traverse city, over to the Detroit area, down to Kalamazoo, Lansing,” he said.
He added, “It has also led over into Alaska,” and Georgia.
Kasher said Norton Shores police have been turning over every stone. For example, rape and kidnapping suspect Brad Mason was on Kasher's radar in February 2014. That's when Mason was shot to death by Kalamazoo police. After the incident, Kalamazoo detectives alerted Kasher about the deceased Mason. The detective said Mason had a history of sexual assault and had connections to Muskegon. But Kasher said this is just one of many leads that fizzled out.
However, Kasher believes Heeringa is alive and is being held against her will.
He said, “Time has gone on where nobody’s found a body, or remains, or clothing, or anything else that have evidence to suggest that Jessica is deceased. I have to go on the assumption and belief that she is still alive somewhere.”
Homrich said, “We’ll never give up hope till something shows up.”
The family set up a tip line of their own, hoping people may feel more open to share information. You can remain anonymous. That number is 231-222-0278.
You can also call Silent Observer and remain anonymous. That number is 231-72-CRIME.
There is a $26,000 reward for information that leads to Jessica Heeringa.
