Police, family fear teen runaway may be captive

ALTON — Police are searching for a runaway teenager feared to be held against her will.

Jasmine L. Espiricueta, 17, had been reported missing on Oct. 17, acting Alton Police Chief Enrique Sotelo said. Her parents say the girl has left home before and returned safely, but they worry this time may be different.

“I just want her home,” her father, Jose Espiricueta, said. “Right now we’re just letting police do what they do.”

He said the girl told relatives she was going to a friend’s house the day of her disappearance. Three days later, while he was at work, she returned to his house in a green Ford Focus to pick up her belongings.

Sotelo said the girl was accompanied by two black males from the Edinburg area: her boyfriend Felix Lee Williams and friend James Mortel. Williams later told police he and Jasmine broke up about 1:30 p.m. Halloween night at Peter Piper Pizza, 2210 W. University Drive, Edinburg.

Police subsequently obtained surveillance video of the couple at the restaurant. She was wearing a dark, long-sleeve shirt, a white undershirt, dark pants and white tennis shoes.

Janie Mendiola, Jasmine’s mother, said she received a phone call from the teen the afternoon of Oct. 31. Jasmine was sobbing and told her mother she wished to return home but that the people she was with wouldn’t let her leave her location. Mendiola then asked her daughter where she was, but the girl said she didn’t know. The call abruptly ended moments later.

Mendiola said she continued calling her daughter, and about 1 a.m. Sunday a male with a Mexican accent answered and asked the woman to identify herself. Mendiola complied and the man hung up the phone. Calls to the girl’s cell phone have since gone unanswered.

“I keep calling,” the mother said. “I just need communication with her. Just something.”

The McAllen Police Department, the FBI and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children are assisting the Alton Police Department with the investigation.

“We’ve already looked into all the leads we have,” Alton’s Chief Sotelo said. “They’ve pretty much been somewhat of a dead end.”

Jasmine had most recently been living with her father, who cares for the teen’s 2-year-old son. She previously lived at her mother’s house.

Adding to her parents’ fears, Jasmine suffers from bipolar syndrome and is recovering from severe depression.

“She gets disoriented,” her father said. “She blacks out if she’s overwhelmed.”

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Ana Ley covers law enforcement and general assignments for The Monitor. She can be reached at (956)683-4428.