Man with Oceana connections wanted in Texas kidnapping.

Jorge Jaramillo

Man with Oceana connections wanted in Texas kidnapping.

DEVINE TEXAS — A man with connections to Oceana County is the primary suspect in a south Texas abduction case. Jorge Jaramillo, 48, is wanted in connection to the aggravated kidnapping of Jessica Sanchez, which took place in Devine, Texas, on Sunday, June 30 about 8:48 a.m.

Jaramillo has ties to Oceana County, specifically in Hart and Mears. He also has other Michigan ties in Muskegon, White Cloud, Saint Paul, and Norton Shores.

Jaramillo has a few distinguishing marks that might help identify him.

“He almost always wears sunglasses because he is missing his left eye, so that’s a distinguishing factor people can be looking out for,” according to information from Devine, Texas Police Department. “He also had a dialysis port in his left arm, which he may or may not have now, so he usually wears long sleeves. The victim has an arrow tattoo on her right forearm pointing down toward her wrist.”

The suspect entered the victim’s home through a window, armed with a handgun. He forced the victim to leave the house with him, and used her vehicle, according to a press release from Devine Police Department.

The suspect abandoned the vehicle soon afterward in a nearby community, and search efforts continued for hours to no avail.

Victim Jessica Sanchez has officially been entered as a missing/endangered person.

“We are not sure why they abandoned the vehicle, but we think somebody may have picked them up due to the fact that helicopter and dogs did not locate them,” Devine Police Lieutenant Andrews stated.

“Jaramillo has been living in the Devine area, but we know he does have ties in Michigan where he attended high school, and also has family there,” said Lt. Andrews.

Jarmarillo with the victim, Jessica Sanchez.

“It is sad to see an awful crime like this in our community. I can only recall two kidnapping cases in my time at Devine PD. One of those cases in 1993 was very similar to this case. That young woman was returned safely to her family, and we hope the victim in this case will also be located and reunited with her family soon…..We do want to emphasize that this was not a random crime. The victim and the offender know each other from a long term relationship that recently ended,” Andrews said.

“The ex-wife of the offender came in and reported that a gun was missing and that Jaramillo had taken it. She stated she was unaware that he had taken it prior to her dropping him off at one of our city parks, which happens to be in close proximity to where Miss Sanchez lives,” Andrews said.

According to the police, Jaramillo held Sanchez at gunpoint, before firing a warning shot into a wall to keep the children away.

“They saw everything, from the gun to being put into the laundry room, to hearing the gun go off and mom saying pretty much ‘goodbye’,” a family member told The Devine News.

“Thank you everyone for all your prayers and shares…pray and share so she can return safely to her three girls,” a family member added.

If you see this man, please dial 911. Do not attempt to approach him yourself. The Devine Police Department can be contacted at 830-663-4403 and the Medina County Sheriff’s Department (Texas) can be reached at (830) 741-6150.