11/21/06: Jesse Ross, 20, Chicago, IL

Jesse Ross is missing.

University of Missouri sophomore Jesse Ross was in town with a group of college students to attend a mock United Nations convention. The convention, held at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers, was followed by a dance. Jesse was spotted on a surveillance photo just before 1 am, and he was last seen by friends around 2:30 am. He was planning to go back to his hotel room at the Four Points Sheraton about ten minutes away, but never made it.

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Last Seen
UMKC student Jesse Ross was last seen at about 2:30 a.m. Nov. 21. He and Ralph Parker were taking part in a simulated emergency meeting with 30 students during a model United Nations conference when Jesse left the conference room through a side door. A surveillance camera in the hotel lobby caught the unmistakable image of the red-haired Jesse, clad in a white T-shirt, jeans, and a green warm-up jacket, walking toward the main doors. Parker assumed Jesse had left to go to the restroom or to their hotel, a 10-minute, well-lit walk away, to sleep. Parker later walked back alone to their room at the Four Points Sheraton (630 N. Rush St.) when the meeting concluded at about 5:30 a.m. Parker turned on the hall light so he wouldn’t disturb his roommate. “There was a big mess on the bed and he’s so skinny, I figured he was under the mess somewhere,” Parker says of Jesse. But when he woke up at 10 a.m., he realized Jesse had never returned. No reason to panic, he probably just crashed in someone else’s room, Parker thought. “So I just packed up his stuff thinking he should be thanking me,” he says. It wasn't until about 3 p.m., 12 hours after he was last seen that Parker and the other 11 UMKC students on the trip realized there was a real emergency.

It is unclear whether Jesse was intoxicated at the time of his disappearance. His friends say that while he had the occasional drink, they had never witnessed him to be drunk or disorderly. Survelliance cameras from the hotel show him carrying a Gatorade bottle.

About Jesse
Jesse was majoring in communication studies/broadcasting with a minor in political science. He had received a scholarship to attend the University of Missouri Kansas City because of his high ACT score in high school.

There was no way imaginable to any one who knew him that Jesse could have committed suicide, or wanted to walked away from the life he was living, said Don Ross, his father. Jesse was looking forward to finishing up his new room in his parents' home and he was pledging the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. He had just gotten a promotion from unpaid intern to paid morning on-air personality at Kansas City radio station 95.7 FM - "The Vibe"---a dream job for a sophomore communication studies/broadcasting major. He was a popular radio personality on the "Shorty and the Boyz" morning show. They decided he needed an on-air name, so they named him Opie Cunningham," after Ron Howard's TV characters, Opie Taylor and Richie Cunningham, said Don. "Opie" is described as intelligent and funny--a very likeable young man not known for ever being depressed or negative.

No clues in disappearance
Police divers and cadaver dogs searched along the Chicago River near that hotel since Ross was reported missing, and police also searched the area around both hotels. They have not turned up any leads. Chicago police have found no evidence that he was a victim of foul play. There has been no activity on Jesse's credit cards or his cell phone, neither of which have been found. GPS tracking could not be used on Ross' cell phone because it is either turned off or the battery is dead. Anyone with information about Jesse Ross’ disappearance should call Chicago police at (312) 744-8266.

Strange Coincidence
Jesse's disappearance comes almost a year after a 31-year-old Matthew Soumakis from Massachusetts disappeared from the same area, possibly the same hotel. Soumakis, who was in Chicago on business, had also been staying at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers. His body was found floating in the Chicago River near Goose Island two weeks later.

Facts of Interest
Name/age: Jesse Ross, 20 (from Belton, MO)
http://www.findjesseross.com/
College: University of Missouri at Kansas City
Physical Description: 5'10," 140# and has red hair and freckles.
Last seen: 11/21/06 at 2:30 am in the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers (301 E. North Water St). (Jesse's Hotel location: Four Points Sheraton at 630 N. Rush Street) wearing a green warm-up jacket and blue jeans.