JESSICA RIDGEWAY - 10 yo/ Concivted: Austin Sigg -Westminster CO

A Colorado teenager has confessed in the abduction and killing of a 10-year-old girl and in a separate attack on a runner, prosecutors said Thursday.

The suspect, 17-year-old Austin Reed Sigg, made his first court appearance Thursday in the death of Jessica Ridgeway and an assault on a 22-year-old female runner in May.

Authorities said Thursday they have "overwhelming" DNA evidence against Sigg.

Sigg lived about a mile from Jessica Ridgeway, who disappeared Oct. 5.

He kept head bowed for much of the time, talking with his attorney but otherwise saying little.

He made eye contact at one point with relatives of Ridgeway, who were in the courtroom wearing purple ribbons in the girl's memory.

District Attorney Scott Storey said the law prevents prosecutors from seeking the death penalty because Sigg is a juvenile, even though he is being prosecuted as an adult.

Sigg's mother was in the courtroom and sat a few rows behind her son. She raised her hand when the judge asked if a parent or guardian was present. He is currently being held at the Mount View Youth Center, but could be moved to an adult facility at a later time.

Arrest papers describe Sigg as "cooperative"

Police in the Denver suburb of Westminster said they took Sigg into custody Tuesday night after receiving a phone call, apparently from his mother, that led them to Sigg.

Reached by phone Wednesday, Sigg's mother told The Associated Press he turned himself in.

"I made the phone call, and he turned himself in. That's all I have to say," said Mindy Sigg, before she broke down in tears and hung up.

Authorities said Sigg also will face charges in the May 28 attempted kidnapping of the 22-year-old runner at the Ketner Lake Open Space. Police have said the two crimes are connected, but they haven't elaborated.

In the May case, a woman fought off a stranger who grabbed her from behind and put a rag that smelled of chemicals over her mouth, authorities said. Police haven't determined if the substance on the rag was meant to subdue the woman.

Authorities have released few details about their investigation, and court documents have been sealed. A police custody report said Sigg was cooperative when he was arrested and waived his rights.

Acquaintances have said Sigg was interested in mortuary science and forensic science, often wore black and hung out in the high school cafeteria's "goth corner."

Sigg had attended Witt Elementary, but he moved on to middle school in 2007, before Jessica enrolled at Witt, Jefferson County Public Schools spokeswoman Lynn Setzer said.

Sigg later attended Standley Lake High School while also taking classes at Warren Tech, a district school that offers specialized training in health science, public safety, technology and other fields.

He left the school district in July after finishing the 11th grade and later earned a GED. School officials don't know why he left.

Arapahoe Community College officials confirmed Sigg is enrolled there but wouldn't release other details.

As technicians in white coveralls searched Sigg's home, former high school classmates painted a picture of Sigg as an intelligent teen who often wore black and complained about school but who would stay late sometimes to work on computers.

Sigg was interested in mortuary science and was taking forensics classes, said Rachel Bradley, 17, who attended Standley Lake with him. Arapahoe Community College offers the state's only accredited mortuary science program.

"It's just so weird to grasp the concept of how, like, I knew him and how he lives so close to us," Bradley said Wednesday.

"I never saw it coming," she said of the allegations against Sigg.

Yearbooks showed Sigg was a member of the choir in his freshman and sophomore years.

Former schoolmate Sarah Morevec said Sigg had been bullied for having a high voice.

Dakota Foster graduated from Standley Lake in 2011, a year before Sigg left. Foster on Wednesday said he and his friends sat at the opposite end of a cafeteria table from Sigg and his friends.

"He was really nice and laughed a lot with us and told jokes, and laughed at our jokes," Foster said.

Foster, 19, said he didn't know Sigg well, but "he used to hang out with a lot of us in what we called the goth corner (of the school cafeteria), where all the metal heads were."

"He wore all black so he fit it," Foster said. He added he wasn't surprised that Sigg left high school after the 11th grade.

"I know he didn't like his classes very much," Foster said. "He always complained about school."

Neighbor Brooke Olds, 13, said Wednesday she usually saw Sigg alone on a skateboard or scooter.

"He was shy and kept to himself," she said.

Police said they notified the Ridgeway family of the arrest Wednesday morning. Jessica lived in Westminster with her mother, Sarah Ridgeway. Jessica's father, Jeremiah Bryant, lives in Missouri.

Jessica's great-grandmother Donna Moss told Kansas City-area reporters that she feels for Sigg's mother but has to fight the rage she has toward Sigg because she knows as a Christian she should forgive.

"I think it's all I've got within me to not want to just burn him, and I mean burn him," she said.

The arrest brought some relief to the community, where some parents said they were nervous about letting their children play outside as authorities searched for Jessica's killer.

"Every parent in every Colorado community will rest a little easier tonight," said Gov. John Hickenlooper, who has a 10-year-old son, Wednesday. "While we still mourn the death of Jessica Ridgeway, we are relieved an arrest has been made and the pursuit of justice can continue."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/10/25/teenager-accused-in-colo-girl-abduction-death-former-classmate-says-studied/#ixzz2ALl87aF5

Exclusive details about arrest, kidnapping of Jessica Ridgeway revealed

Posted on: 6:23 pm, October 24, 2012, by David Mitchell and Justin Joseph, updated on: 12:37am, October 25, 2012

WESTMINSTER, Colo. – Police set up a command post complete with a mobile crime lab, a van and tents Wednesday in front of the house of the teenager who told his mom he kidnapped and killed 10-year-old Jessica Ridgeway.

The suspect, 17-year-old Austin Reed Sigg was arrested at his home near 102nd Ave. and Oak St. in Westminster Tuesday night after police, according to a source, received a phone from his mother.

A high-placed source in law enforcement tells FOX31 Denver’s Justin Joseph that Sigg confessed to kidnapping and killing the little girl.

WARNING: The details are graphic.

The source says Sigg told police he drove by Jessica Ridgeway on the morning of October 5, turned his car around and grabbed her. He brought her into the car where he hog-tied her and then he strangled her to death.

Police want to find out how an abduction turned into a bizarre and gruesome murder. They hope to find those clues inside the suspect’s home.

The source tells Justin Joseph FBI evidence recovery teams found parts of the little girl’s body inside the crawl space at the house.

Two sources say investigators came to the home after Sigg confessed the killing to his mother who then called police.

“It’s kind of terrifying to think that I knew him,” says a young neighbor.

Neighbors called Sigg’s behavior odd and unusual. “He was like always really quiet and he kept to himself.”

So unusual that around the neighborhood, Sigg’s stare was noticed.

“She was freaked out by a teenager staring at her at the park.” Emily Alexander says Sigg’s stare was so cold that her daughter remembered it days later.

“After Jessica was kidnapped she told me she knew who it was. She was sure she knew who it was and it was this teenager. A few days later he was walking by and she pointed him out and she said ‘That’s the guy!’ That was him.”

Authorities towed an SUV from Sigg’s home Wednesday. Sources say police were still in search of a secondary crime scene where Ridgeway’s body may have been dismembered as parts of it were discovered on October 10 in an open field in Arvada.

Parents around the neighborhood were in shock. “This is where we live. This is where my baby will grow up,” one says.

Many believe Sigg’s young age was one factor that made it possible for him to stay under law enforcement’s radar.

“Because he was 17. I didn’t believe her,” says Anderson. “I thought she was just being paranoid.”

The two main connections police had to their suspect were the torso found in the field and the little girl’s backpack which contained many of her clothes. It was found in a neighborhood in Superior two days after she disappeared.

A high-placed law enforcement source says Sigg confessed to leaving those things as a distraction for police.

Investigators expect to be at the suspect’s home for quite some time. They closed the 10600 block of 102nd Ave. to everyone except people who live there for the next couple of days.

http://kdvr.com/2012/10/24/exclusive-details-about-arrest-kidnapping-of-jessica-ridgeway-revealed/

Sigg charged as adult, faces 17 counts in Jessica Ridgeway murder case

Posted on: 10:46 am, October 30, 2012, by Will C. Holden, updated on: 07:19pm, October 30, 2012



JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. — The 17-year-old accused of abducting and murdering Jessica Ridgeway will be charged as an adult and will face an array of counts, including first degree murder and sexual assault on a child.

Westminster’s Austin Sigg appeared in front of a Jefferson County judge in a Golden courtroom Tuesday morning for a brief hearing, where he heard the 17 charges being filed against him.

There will be 11 in the Ridgeway case and an additional six for an attack at Ketner Lake on May 28.

The courtroom was flowing over Tuesday, with a small contingent of Sigg’s family and a larger contingent of his friends — most of them from Standley Lake High School.

FOX31′s Marika Lorraine approached two girls who said they had attended the hearing to support Sigg. The two were outside the courtroom. When asked why they were not inside, they told Lorraine “there was no more room.”

Among the sizable contingent inside the court was Sigg’s father. FOX31′s Hendrik Sybrandy said Robert Sigg sat two rows behind his son and was visibly shaking.

Ridgeway’s family showed up with more numbers for the hearing. Sybrandy said that large group was once against dressed in purple, the favorite color of the slain 10-year-old, and showed no visible emotion.

The next step in this case will be a reverse transfer request, scheduled for Nov. 27. Sybrandy explained the process of this particular court proceeding on “Colorado’s Everyday Show” shortly after the hearing concluded.

“In the old days, prosecutors would file charges against Sigg as an adult and this case would proceed straight to a district court, with the next step being an adult hearing,” Sybrandy said. “Nowadays, the defense attorneys get a chance to make an argument against Sigg being charged as an adult.

“That is what will take place at the reverse transfer request.”

http://kdvr.com/2012/10/30/sigg-charged-as-adult-faces-17-counts-in-jessica-ridgeway-murder-case/

Here's some pictures again.




Sorry for the long post, I was busy and did not get to the first one. I wish he would get the death penality. He is old enough to know that rape and murder is wrong. At least I hope he gets life with no parole. It broke my heart when I heard the little angel was raped. This monster should be put to death he has no conscience.
William

Suspect in death of Jessica Ridgeway due in court Tuesday

6:22 AM, Nov 27, 2012
Written by DAN ELLIOTT, Associated Press

DENVER — A teenager accused of kidnapping and killing a 10-year-old Colorado girl and attacking a runner was scheduled to return to court on Tuesday.

Austin Sigg, 17, is charged as an adult with murder, kidnapping and other crimes. He is accused of killing Jessica Ridgeway, who disappeared on the morning of Oct. 5 after leaving her home in the west Denver suburb of Westminster.

He is also charged with a May attack on a 22-year-old jogger, who escaped.

Prosecutors say he has confessed to kidnapping and killing Jessica and attacking the jogger. It’s not clear if he has made any comment on the charge of sexually assaulting Jessica.

Sigg’s lawyers could have asked a judge to send the case to juvenile court after prosecutors charged him as an adult, but state judicial system spokesman Robert McCallum said the defense hadn’t made that request as of Monday.

It wasn’t immediately clear whether the defense could still seek to transfer the case to juvenile court. McCallum said he couldn’t elaborate, and the defense and prosecuting attorneys said they couldn’t comment. All cited a judge’s gag order.

Sigg faces four counts of murder, two counts of kidnapping, and one count each of sexual assault on a child and robbery in Jessica’s abduction and slaying. He faces charges of attempted murder, attempted sexual assault and attempted second degree kidnapping in the attack on the runner. Prosecutors also charged Sigg with six counts of crime of violence.

If convicted as an adult, Sigg faces up to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 40 years. If he is convicted as a juvenile, he faces a maximum of seven years on each conviction, which could put him in prison for decades if he is ordered to serve his sentences consecutively.

In charging documents, prosecutors said Sigg acted alone in kidnapping, robbing, and sexually assaulting Jessica. The robbery charge involved the girl’s backpack and water bottle, which were found in another suburb three days after she disappeared.

Police arrested Sigg on Oct. 23. His mother told The Associated Press she called police and her son turned himself in.

Police said that in the May attack, a 22-year-old woman reported she was jogging when she was grabbed from behind by a man who placed a rag with a chemical smell over her mouth. Police have not said whether the rag was soaked with a chemical meant to subdue the woman.

Sigg was being held without bail at a youth correctional facility.

http://www.coloradoan.com/viewart/20121127/NEWS11/311270007/Suspect-death-Jessica-Ridgeway-due-court-Tuesday

Jessica Ridgeway Case: Austin Reed Sigg To Be Tried As An Adult

By DAN ELLIOTT
11/27/12 05:51 PM ET EST

GOLDEN, Colo. — A 17-year-old boy charged with kidnapping and killing a 10-year-old Colorado girl and attacking a runner will be prosecuted as an adult and also moved to an adult jail cell, a judge said Tuesday.

Austin Sigg was charged as an adult last month, including a murder charge in the death of Jessica Ridgeway, who disappeared Oct. 5 as she was walking to school in the west Denver suburb of Westminster. His lawyers had the option of asking to move the case to juvenile court instead, but Judge Stephen Munsinger said that the defense had waived its right to do that.

If convicted as an adult, Sigg faces up to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 40 years. A conviction in juvenile court also could have brought a stiff sentence. He faced a maximum of seven years there on each count, which could have put him in prison for decades if he were ordered to serve his sentences consecutively.

Defense attorneys have not said publicly why they did not seek to move the case to juvenile court. They declined to comment to the media, citing the judge's gag order.

During Tuesday's hearing, Munsinger also agreed to move Sigg from a juvenile detention facility to an adult jail at the request of state's juvenile justice system officials. They said Sigg is being held in an isolation cell that's not meant for long-term stays and requires full-time observation because the cell isn't monitored by video. The officials said he hasn't caused any problems, is respectful and spends most of his days playing Sudoku.

"I would describe him as very mature and very intelligent," said Dave Maynard, who oversees six juvenile detention centers in the Denver area, including Sigg's.

Sigg, also from Westminster, turns 18 in January, and Munsinger said he would have been moved to adult jail after that anyway.

His lawyers opposed the transfer.

"We very much oppose moving this child to an adult jail," defense lawyer Katherine Spengler said.

Sigg attended the hearing dressed in a green uniform jumpsuit and was shackled at his wrists and ankles. He had some whispered conversations with his lawyers, occasionally nodding.

Security was tight. Spectators were screened twice, and 10 deputies stood guard inside the courtroom.

Sigg also is accused of attacking a 22-year-old runner, who escaped, in May.

Sigg is charged with four counts of murder, two counts of kidnapping, and one count each of sexual assault on a child and robbery in Jessica's abduction and slaying. He's charged with attempted murder, attempted sexual assault and attempted second-degree kidnapping in the attack on the runner. He's also charged with six counts of crime of violence.

Prosecutors said he confessed to kidnapping and killing Jessica and attacking the jogger. It's not clear if he has made any comment on the charge of sexually assaulting the girl.

In charging documents, prosecutors said Sigg acted alone in kidnapping, robbing and sexually assaulting Jessica. The robbery charge involved the girl's backpack and water bottle, which were found in another suburb three days after she disappeared.

The 22-year-old woman said she was running in a Westminster park when a man grabbed her from behind and placed a rag with a chemical smell over her mouth. Investigators have not said whether the rag was soaked with a chemical meant to subdue her.

Police arrested Sigg on Oct. 23. His mother told The Associated Press she called police and her son turned himself in.

Sigg's next court appearance will be a motions hearing scheduled for Dec. 12. A preliminary hearing, where the judge will decide if the evidence is sufficient evidence to go to trial, is scheduled for Feb. 22.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/27/jessica-ridgeway-austin-sigg-adult_n_2200179.html

Chelsea Park renamed Jessica Ridgeway Memorial Park by Westminster City Council[b]

Posted: 11/29/2012
Last Updated: 16 hours ago

WESTMINSTER, Colo. - A park where a makeshift memorial grew during the search for Jessica Ridgeway and after the discovery of her body is being renamed in the 10-year-old girl's honor.

Ridgeway disappeared on Oct. 5 as she was walking to meet up with friends at Chelsea Park so they could all walk to school together. The park is located at 10765 Moore Street, several blocks from her home.

Jessica never got to the park, and her remains were found in an Arvada open space park five days later.

Austin Reed Sigg was arrested and charged with the girl's murder on Oct. 24.

The Westminster City Council voted Monday to change the name of Chelsea Park to Jessica Ridgeway Memorial Park. The City Manager's Office reported on Thursday the park's old sign has been taken down and will be replaced one bearing the new name in about two weeks.

Documents prepared for the Monday City Council meeting by Donald M. Tripp, director of Parks, Recreation and Libraries for Westminster, show the original estimated the price for changing the sign would be $2,500. The city manager's announcement, however, said Majestic Metals volunteered to replace the sign at no cost to the city.

The City Council documents also said that Tripp's department is considering plans to improve the park at an estimated cost of between $250,000 and $350,000. Because there is only $85,000 available in the 2014 Parks General Capital Improvement Fund, Tripp wrote there will be a need to raise funds for the project.

Tripp also wrote that his department plans to accommodate the Ridgeway family's request to have volunteers participate in a project at the park.

Local residents led by Linda Mitchell and the Westminster Noon Rotary Club lobbied for the name of the park to be changed, Tripp wrote.

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/news-archive/archive-thursday/chelsea-park-renamed-jessica-ridgeway-memorial-park-by-westminster-city-council

Jessica Ridgeway case: Austin Sigg expected in court for first time since being send to adult jail
First court date since being sent to adult jail


Jessica Ridgweay went missing on Oct. 5. Her body was found 5 days later.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press

Posted: 12/12/2012
Last Updated: 2 hours ago
Anica Padilla

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. - The teen accused of kidnapping and killing 10-year-old Jessica Ridgeway is expected back in court Wednesday, for the first time since being sent to adult jail.

Austin Sigg faces more than a dozen charges in Jefferson County in the disappearance of the Westminster 5th grader.

Sigg turned himself into police Oct. 23, more than two weeks after Jessica was last seen in Westminster. Her remains were found five days later in an Arvada open space park.

During Sigg's last appearance in November, his defense team stopped opposing his transfer to adult jail to face murder, kidnapping, sexual assault charges.

We should learn find out today at 8:30 how he's adjusting to that.

The preliminary hearing -- where the judge decides if there is enough evidence to put Sigg on trial -- is now set for Feb. 22.

Sigg also faces charges for allegedly attempting to murder, kidnap and sexually assault a 22-year-old jogger at Ketner Lake over Memorial Day weekend.

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/local-news/jessica-ridgeway-case-austin-sigg-expected-in-court-for-first-time-since-being-send-to-adult-jail

Austin Sigg faces new charges in Jessica Ridgeway murder case

Posted on: 12:01 pm, December 12, 2012, by Will C. Holden, updated on: 12:03pm, December 12, 2012

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. — The 17-year-old accused of kidnapping and murdering Jessica Ridgeway was told at his first court appearance that he would face 17 charges.

Six weeks later, during his first court appearance since learning he would be tried as an adult, Austin Sigg was told Wednesday that he will be facing two additional charges.

One charge for sexual assault on a child and another for crime of violence will run the total list of charges against Sigg to 19.

Sigg’s defense team, which already lost its appeal to have their client tried as a juvenile, didn’t stand by quietly Wednesday. SIgg’s attorney said the media coverage of this trial has become “massive and pervasive,” and that the publicity has made it “nearly impossible to seat an impartial jury” in Jefferson County.

The judge agreed in part with the defense’s argument. He banned the media and the public from the court room for Sigg’s preliminary hearing, which is set for Feb. 22.

However, the judge issued no decision on the change of venue request Wednesday.

Sigg’s defense team also stated that their client has been voluntarily speaking to jail guards, and that information from those conversations has been passed on to the District Attorney. The judge ruled this practice must stop.

Ridgeway was reported missing on Oct. 5. Her body was discovered in pieces in an Arvada open space on Oct. 10.

In addition to more than a dozen charges for the Ridgeway murder, Sigg faces charges for allegedly attempting to kidnap, sexually assault and murder a jogger at Ketner Lake over Memorial Day.

If convicted, Sigg could face life in prison. He would likely be eligible for parole after the first 40 years of such a sentence.

http://kdvr.com/2012/12/12/austin-sigg-faces-new-charges-in-jessica-ridgeway-murder-case/

Eligible for parole after 40 years is an outrage. He should be put to death. I shed a tear when I read what he did to that little girl. William

He was acting like an evil man when he did those horrible things to poor little Jessica. Now he wants to whine and be treated like a child.

He is a man, an evil man who needs to be dealt with as such.

Jessica Ridgeway Update: Sex charge added against Austin Sigg, murder suspect in Colo. girl's death February 22, 2013 1:54 PM

(CBS/AP) GOLDEN, Colo. - A sexual exploitation charge was added against a Colorado teen accused of kidnapping and killing 10-year-old Jessica Ridgeway, prosecutors said.

Austin Sigg, 18, is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Friday in Golden, Colo. He already faces murder, kidnapping, sexual assault and robbery charges for allegedly killing Jessica in October 2012 and attacking a runner that same year.

Attorneys for the state said they're dropping two charges against Sigg but adding the exploitation charge because of a video of a child found during their investigation.
The Colorado Supreme Court overturned a judge's decision to close Friday's proceedings in which prosecutors plan to lay out their case.

Prosecutors expect the hearing to move ahead, even though a hearing earlier this month was canceled as the media challenged the decision to close it.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-57570774-504083/jessica-ridgeway-update-sex-charge-added-against-austin-sigg-murder-suspect-in-colo-girls-death/

She was a gorgeous little angel. "allegedly killing", my ass, he confessed.
I wish she would get full justice with a death penality on this monster. Death for a death.
Murder a child loose your life. William

I don't understand when a person has confessed why the term "alleged" is still used.

Detective: Teen kept girl's remains in crawl space

Fri, Feb 22, 2013


GOLDEN, Colo. (AP) — A detective says an 18-year-old accused of kidnapping and killing a suburban Denver school girl kept some of the girl's remains in a crawl space at a home he shared with his mother.

Westminster police detective Luis Lopez testified Friday that the teenager, Austin Sigg, had been on investigators' radar before a neighbor called a tip line suggesting they check him out.

Two FBI agents responded and took a DNA sample from Sigg on Oct. 19, four days before his mother called to say he confessed to killing the 10-year-old girl, Jessica Ridgeway.

Sigg's mother also told authorities of the human remains.

Lopez says the remains were later identified as Jessica's and that DNA samples link him to Jessica's remains and clothing. He says no semen was found.

Sigg is charged with murder, kidnapping, sexual assault and robbery.
Prosecutors have also added three counts of sexual exploitation of a
child because child pornography was allegedly found during the
investigation.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

An 18-year-old accused of
kidnapping and killing a suburban Denver school girl kept some of the
girl's remains in a crawl space at a home he shared with his mother, a detective testified said Friday.

The teenager, Austin Sigg, had
been on investigators' radar before a neighbor called a tip line
suggesting they check him out because he seemed preoccupied with death, Westminster police detective Luis Lopez said.

Two FBI agents responded and took a DNA sample from Sigg on Oct. 19,
four days before his mother called to say he confessed to killing the
girl, Jessica Ridgeway. Sigg's mother also told authorities of the human
remains.

Lopez said the remains were later identified as Jessica's and that DNA samples link him to Jessica's remains and clothing.

Prosecutors are laying out their case during the hearing to try to
convince a judge that there's enough evidence for Sigg to stand trial.
The judge originally ordered the hearing to be closed to the public but
the Colorado Supreme Court sided with media organizations who argued
that he failed to show that holding the hearing in public would
jeopardize Sigg's right to a fair trial.

Jessica's disappeared while walking to school on Oct. 5. Some of her
remains were found in garbage bags in an open space park five days
later. Friday was the first time investigators revealed that the bags
contained her torso.

The case set parents in the Denver area on edge as weeks passed
without an arrest. Hundreds of officers canvassed the area and
investigated leads and took DNA samples as parents waited with their
children at bus stops and thought twice about letting them out of sight.

Police asked residents to be on the lookout for anything suspicious
from their bosses, friends and family members, watching for things like
leaving home unexpectedly, missing appointments or changing their
appearance.

Lopez said Sigg's mother turned her son in on Oct. 23, a day before
testing was completed on the DNA sample taken based on the neighbor's tip.

Former classmates of Sigg described him as a smart and interested in mortuary science.

http://news.yahoo.com/detective-teen-kept-girls-remains-crawl-space-202921525.html

Jessica Ridgeway Murder Suspect Allegedly Confessed on 911 Call

Posted on February 23, 2013
by ABC Digital

(DENVER) -- The teenage suspect in the murder and dismemberment of 10-year-old Jessica Ridgeway will stand trial after a judge ruled there is enough evidence, including an alleged 911 confession, to move forward with the case.

Prosecutors played the 911 recording on Friday at a preliminary hearing for Austin Sigg, 18, in which the teen confessed to murdering the fifth grader and trying to kidnap a female jogger.

"I murdered Jessica Ridgeway, I have proof that I did. I'm giving myself up completely, there will be no resistance whatsoever," Sigg said on the Oct. 23, 2012, recording, according to ABC News Denver affiliate KMGH-TV.

The dispatcher then asked about his criminal history.

"The only other [incident] was Ketner Lake, where a woman was attacked. That was me," Sigg said in the recording.

A lead investigator on the case testified that Mindy Sigg, the teen's mother, told the dispatcher her son had hidden Jessica's remains in a crawl space under the family home, KMGH reported.

Authorities arrested Sigg at his Westminster, Colo., home that evening.

Sigg is charged with murder, kidnapping, sexual assault and robbery in the Ridgeway case.

He faces an attempted kidnapping charge for the May 28, 2012, attack on a 22-year-old female jogger. Police said a man tried to grab her from behind on a trail around Ketner Lake.

The woman said the man tried to put a rag over her mouth that had a chemical smell. She was able to get away and call 911.

A judge ruled Friday that Sigg should be held without bail. He is scheduled to be arraigned March 12.

http://www.eastidahonews.com/2013/02/jessica-ridgeway-murder-suspect-allegedly-confessed-on-911-call/

Austin Sigg enters not guilty plea
Posted on: 11:49 am, April 12, 2013, by Web Staff, updated on: 01:54pm, April 12, 2013
GOLDEN, Colo. — Despite the fact that he allegedly admitted guilt to police, Austin Sigg, the man accused of kidnapping and killing 10-year-old Jessica Ridgeway, pleaded not guilty in court Friday.

Sigg, now 18, is accused of brutally killing Ridgeway. The girl disappeared while she was walking to school on October 5. Her torso was found in a Jefferson County open space less than a week later.

He faces 17 charges in the case and will be tried as an adult.

Nearly three weeks after Ridgeway’s disappearance, Sigg called 911 and told the dispatcher he had murdered the 10-year-old. The call was played at his preliminary hearing on Feb. 22.

“I murdered Jessica Ridgeway,” Sigg said during the phone call. “I have proof that I did it and I’ll answer all the questions that you want.”

In the process of their investigation, police were able to link Sigg to an attack on a female jogger at Ketner Lake on May 28. Six of the 19 charges he is facing stem from that attack.

Because he was 17 when Ridgeway was murdered, Sigg cannot face the death penalty. He would likely face life in prison with the possibility of parole after 40 years if he pleads guilty or is convicted.

http://kdvr.com/2013/04/12/austin-sigg-expected-to-enter-plea-friday/

He confessed now pleads not guilty. Lawyer bullsh*t for stalling for time. He still should be castrated. William

Jury selection starts in Jessica Ridgeway case

8:11 PM, Sep 20, 2013

GOLDEN - Jury selection is underway for a teenager charged with killing and dismembering a 10-year-old Westminster schoolgirl.

Potential jurors filled out forms Friday for the trial of 18-year-old Austin Sigg. They will return to court for questioning on Tuesday.

Sigg is accused of kidnapping and killing Jessica Ridgeway in October. She disappeared shortly after leaving her home in Westminster to walk to school.

Sigg is charged with murder, kidnapping, sexual assault, robbery and other charges. Detectives say he has confessed to killing Jessica but denied sexually assaulting her.

If convicted, he would face life in prison but could be paroled after 40 years. He can't get the death penalty because he was 17 at the time of the slaying.

Opening statements are scheduled for Oct. 3.

http://www.9news.com/news/article/356039/339/Jury-selection-to-begin-for-Siggs-trial

Jessica Ridgeway’s family prepares for Colorado murder trial

Posted on: 9:50 pm, September 25, 2013
by Sarah J. Clark

INDEPENDENCE, Mo. — It’s been almost a year since the body of Jessica Ridgeway was found dismembered in a Denver Colorado suburb. The man accused of killing her will soon head to trial.

Opening arguments are scheduled for October 3 in Austin Sigg’s murder trial in Colorado. Jessica lived there when she died, but has family in Independence, Mo.

They plan to travel to Colorado for Sigg’s trial.

Ridgeway’s family is still scraping together the money they need to make the trip. While they don’t think justice will truly be served in the case, they say they want to make sure Sigg won’t be able to hurt anyone else.

“It’s just been kind of numb. It’s like trying to put an end to it, and it just keeps getting brought back up,” said Angie Moss, Jessica’s grandmother

While 10-year-old Jessica was laid to rest in January, her family says they won’t have true closure until her killer is held responsible. In October of 2012, Sigg confessed to the kidnapping, murder and dismemberment of Jessica’s body.

According to reports, prosecutors in Colorado think Sigg’s attorneys may try for a mental state defense.

“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with his mental state,” Moss said. “I think he did what he did and he knows what he was doing and he did it intentionally.”

Since Sigg was a minor when the crime was committed, he won’t get the death penalty. Jessica’s family has been told the most he could get is life with the possibility of parole, which Moss feels just isn’t enough.

“I’ll do everything in my power to keep him in… never ever to get out. Ever.” Moss said.

Jessica’s family hopes to be able to stay in Colorado long enough to see a finished playground be officially dedicated to Jessica. That’s scheduled for October 5, the one year anniversary of her disappearance.

http://fox4kc.com/2013/09/25/jessica-ridgeways-family-prepares-for-colorado-murder-trial/

Teen who abducted and killed Jessica Ridgeway, 10, pleads guilty to all charges

A Colorado teen charged with abducting and killing 10-year-old Jessica Ridgeway last year has pleaded guilty to all charges, against the advice of his attorneys.

Austin Sigg, 18, could be sent to prison for the rest of his life for murdering Jessica in Westminster, Colorado, in October 2012.

Jessica was snatched off the street while walking to school, and her disappearance panicked thousands of residents in Denver's western suburbs.

Sigg also pleaded guilty Tuesday to a May 2012 attack on a 22-year-old jogger at a lake in Jessica's neighborhood.

Prosecutors said Sigg entered the pleas because of overwhelming evidence against him. His trial would have started Thursday.

'The writing was on the wall,' Jefferson County District Attorney Peter Weir said after the hearing.

Sigg faces a minimum sentence of 40 years in prison with the possibility of parole afterward when he is sentenced after a hearing starting November 18.

Prosecutors asked Judge Stephen Munsinger to impose consecutive sentences on some of the other charges so Sigg spends the rest of his life behind bars. Sigg's lawyers argue the law doesn't allow that.


Tragic: Jessica Ridgeway, 10, was snatched off the street in her quiet suburban neighborhood, bound and then murdered by Austin Sigg last October


Jessica Ridgeway's mother Sarah Ridgeway left the courtroom as prosecutors described the horrors committed against her daughter by Sigg

Sigg cannot face the death penalty because he was 17 at the time of the slaying.

'In this case, there has been justice for Jessica,' Weir said.

Defense attorney Mitch Ahnstedt told the court that Sigg was entering the pleas against his lawyers' counsel but he didn't explain why.

Sigg's father, Rob Sigg, said in a statement that he was thankful that the Ridgeway family would be spared the ordeal of a trial.

'We ask the community to continue to support the Ridgeway family and keep them in your thoughts and prayers,' he said.

The families of both Jessica and Sigg were in the courtroom Tuesday. Sigg spoke only to answer the judge's questions about whether he understood what he was agreeing to.


Accepted: Austin Sigg pleaded guilty to all charges, even though his attorneys advised against it

After Sigg pleaded guilty, prosecutor Hal Sargent started to describe how Sigg grabbed Jessica, pulled her into his car and tied up her hands and feet, leading Jessica's mother, Sarah Ridgeway, to leave the courtroom. Munsinger stopped him after defense attorneys objected, saying they weren't disputing the evidence.

Jessica, a fifth-grader who loved purple and performing in a peewee cheerleading squad, left home to walk to school in Westminster on October 5, 2012. She never arrived.

Hundreds of people helped search for her. Jessica's backpack was found two days later in Superior, a town about 6 miles from her home. Days after that, human remains later identified as Jessica's were found in a park.

Authorities, meanwhile, urged residents to watch for any suspicious changes in neighbors' behavior. Officers guarded crosswalks and photographed cars in the area. Parents escorted their children to and from area schools. Mailboxes and trees were encircled by ribbons in Jessica's favorite color, purple.


Jessica's disappearance on her way home from school caused panic among parents across Denver, who feared their children were not safe

On October 19, 2012, a resident contacted authorities to alert them to Sigg because he reportedly had a fascination with death, Westminster police Detective Luis Lopez testified at a preliminary hearing. FBI agents took a DNA sample from Sigg.

On October 23, Sigg's mother, Mindy Sigg, called 911, saying her son wanted to confess.

Investigators said Sigg told them some of Jessica's remains were hidden in a crawl space in his mother's home, where he lived. They said Sigg described how he abducted Jessica as she walked past his car. He said he bound her arms and her legs, drove around for a little bit, then took her to his house.


Horror: Police discovered Jessica's body in a field off of a highway. It had been severely dismembered by Sigg, who admitted he killed her

There, he told investigators, Sigg tried to strangle the girl and then used his hands to kill her. He also allegedly told investigators that he dismembered Jessica in a bathtub.

Lopez said Sigg's DNA was found on Jessica's clothing.

Sigg dropped out of high school after the 11th grade and later earned a GED. Former classmates say he was intelligent but complained about school and was bullied for having a high voice.

When asked about his criminal record on the 911 call, Sigg told the dispatcher: 'The only other thing that I have done was the Ketner Lake incident where the woman got attacked. That was me.'

In the attack on the jogger, investigator Michael Lynch testified that Sigg used homemade chloroform to attempt to subdue the woman. She escaped.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2440903/Teen-abducted-killed-Jessica-Ridgeway-10-pleads-guilty-charges.html

17 or not when the crime was done he knew it was wrong.  The laws need to be changed.  He should be executed for his heinous crime.  William

At least he won't be murdering any more little girls.

Jessica Ridgeway's mother works to save kids through new app

9:31 AM, Oct 6, 2013
Meagan Fitzgerald

LARIMER COUNTY - Sarah Ridgeway says the park where Jessica never made it to that day is just one of the ways her daughter's legacy will live on.

Saturday afternoon, Sarah was in Larimer County to take part in the launch of a new app called "The Lassy Project." It's an app that will notify parents if their child goes missing.

John Guydon is the CEO of the Lassy Project and says he was inspired to create the application after Jessica went missing.

"As long as they're walking the designated route that the parents program, everything is fine. The moment they start to stray from that route - that's when mom and dad get that initial notification saying 'your kid is off course.' After they investigate, if everything is OK they close the alert," Guydon said. "But, if something is actually wrong, that's when they press the escalate button and we get involved."

Once the parents file a police report, Guydon says the "village" or community will get a notification on their phone that a child is missing so they can be on the lookout for the child. Guydon says the "village" consists of people who have downloaded the app and are in the general area of where the child was last seen.

Sarah says the last year has been difficult for her. She has had her ups and downs, but says having an app inspired by the loss of her daughter helps her cope.

"It has been an up and down day and different days have been up and down. It just takes one day at a time," Sarah said.

On Saturday, dozens of people were at a local neighborhood park to celebrate Jessica's life and the amazing legacy she left behind at just 10-years-old.

Jessica's mother says she will continue to work to spread the word about the free app. The Lassy Project has been unanimously indorsed by the Colorado Fraternal Order of Police.

http://www.9news.com/news/article/358524/339/Jessica-Ridgeways-spreads-word-about-app

'Evil is apparently real': Teen who killed and dismembered girl, 10, labeled her organs and kept her skull will die in prison after judge hands 'monster' life plus 86 years

A teenager who kidnapped, sexually assaulted and strangled to death a 10-year-old girl before dismembering her body and keeping her skull will die in prison after a judge labelled him 'evil' and sentenced him to consecutive hefty prison terms.

Jessica Ridgeway's killer Austin Sigg, 18, was emotionless as Jefferson County District Court Chief Judge Stephen Munsinger went through each of the 15 counts he pleaded guilty to, handing him a life sentence for first-degree murder and then 86 additional years for counts including sexual assault and kidnapping.

'Evil is apparently real. It was present in our community on October 5, 2012,' Munsinger told the court, after saying the case 'cries out for a life sentence.'

'I expect you to spend the rest of your natural life in prison,' he added to Sigg.

Sigg chose not to address the judge before being sentenced and didn't react while he learned his fate though his mother, Mindy Sigg, sobbed behind him in the courtroom. Afterward, he was handcuffed and led out without comment.

Sentencing: Austin Sigg was been sentenced to life in prison in district court in Golden, Colorado, on Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Defense attorneys had argued state law required the judge to give him a sentence that made him eligible for parole after 40 years because he was a juvenile at the time of the crime. However, Munsinger overruled this.

At a press conference following the sentencing, prosecutors lauded Munsinger's decision and embraced Jessica's mother, Sarah Ridgeway, who appeared relieved her daughter's killer would die in prison.
'We are confident that this sentence ensures that Austin Sigg will never, ever leave the Department of Corrections and he will never, ever be in a position to prey on members of our community,' District Attorney Peter Weir said.

Earlier Tuesday, Chief Deputy District Attorney Hal Sargent described Sigg's October 5, 2012 atrocities, including snatching Jessica Ridgeway off the street, lying to her as she begged to know if she'd ever see her mom again, raping her and then strangling her before cutting up her body for his own sexual gratification.

'We have never seen a crime as heinous, depraved, whatever adjective we use to describe it....'  said.

'He stole from Jessica her future, everything she was but also everything she would be... no sentence can undo that pain they will carry with them for the rest of their lives. But it can make sure Austin Sigg never has the chance to inflict this pain on another person.


Jessica's disappearance on her way home from school caused panic among parents across Denver, who feared their children were not safe

Relief: District Attorney Peter Weir and Jessica Ridgeway's mother Sarah Ridgeway, embrace on Tuesday, following the sentencing of 18-year-old Austin Sigg to life plus 86 years for Jessica Ridgeway's murder

Prayers: Wendy Pesavento, Jessica Ridgeway's great grandmother, prays after the little girl's killer was sentenced to die in prison

'I suggest you impose on Mr Sigg a life sentence and an actual life sentence that ensures he dies in prison.'

Jessica's mother, Sarah Ridgeway, left the courtroom before Sargent began his presentation and Sigg's mother, Mindy Sigg, sat hunched over in her seat, crying as he described the nearly two hours the teen kept the girl in his room after grabbing her off the street.

'It's painful to imagine what he did to her in that time,' Sargent said before explaining how Sigg sexually assaulted the child, leaving her with horrific bruises then strangled her to death.

Sigg first tried to strangle Jessica with zip ties but he told police later that he didn't 'have enough leverage' so strangled her with his hands for up to three minutes.


When he noticed she was still twitching, Sargent said Sigg filled a bathtub and forced her face into the scalding hot water.

'I don't want to go into all of the details of how he carefully, methodically dismembered her,' Sargent said, but did explain how he disposed of her organs but left her vagina in which he placed a cross.

The statements come a day after Jessica's family spoke of their heartbreak at the loss of their happy little girl who loved butterflies and the color purple.

Killer: The now-18-year-old, pictured center, sat emotionless in court Tuesday as prosecutors recapped the atrocities he confessed to in October 2012

Sentence: District Judge Stephen Munsinger speaks in district court in Golden, Colorado, on Tuesday as he sentences Austin Sigg to life plus 86 years for the killing of Jessica Ridgeway

'I miss her with every breath,' said Christine Ridgeway, Jessica's grandmother. 'There are no more hugs or kisses or her little toes digging into mine on the couch.'

She added: 'This monster took away the light, at least in my life. I would like to know that Mr. Sigg is in a very small cell for the rest of his life.'

The family spoke about the light Jessica brought to their lives and the fear and loss they've suffered since her murder, but the little girl's mother couldn't bring herself to speak at length.

'I don't think the defendant has a right to hear how he has affected me,' Sarah Ridgeway said. 'Once we walk out of this courtroom, we will no longer remember his name, only the legacy Jessica left behind.'

Jessica's other grandmother, Angie Moss told the court: 'Now when people ask me, "How many grandkids do you have?" I have to say, "Seven, but I used to have eight."'

Holding back tears, she asked the judge to give Sigg the maximum sentence.

'I can't imagine being his mother, trying to live with the fact that I raised a child like that, to live with or know that I had raised a child that was capable of doing this,' Moss said. 'I can't imagine the damage that has been done to his mother.'

Sadness: Jessica Ridgeway's aunt Becca Ridgeway, left, mother Sarah Ridgeway and grandmother Christine Ridgeway, right, testify in district court in Golden, Colorano, on Monday

Killer: Sigg remained emotionless apart from a short period when he broke down in tears after a video celebrating Jessica's life was played to the court

Tears: Tears roll down the face of Austin Sigg, center, in district court in Golden, Colorado, on Monday as he watched the video of Jessica

The family had to endure hearing the horrifying details of how their 10-year-old daughter met a grisly end.

Sigg barely reacted as prosecutors pushed for consecutive sentences on all 15 convictions of Jessica's murder but he broke down in tears after a video celebrating Jessica's life was played to the courtroom.

Since he was 17 when he committed the crime, Sigg is exempt from the death penalty and eligible for parole after 40 years, but the other charges could add up to a life sentence.

A psychologist told the court Monday how Sigg was sexually aroused by dismembering the girl in a bath tub and lied to her about how she would see her mother again.

Expert witness Anna Salter said: 'There's no logical motive for dismemberment other than sexual thrill.'

She also told how the teenager had no empathy for Jessica and calmly ate a snack as he recounted the horrific details of his crime. He strangled her to death with his bare hands after his first attempt to do so with a zip tie failed.

She added that Sigg kept certain body parts, including Jessica's skull, which Salter said he was particularly interested in. He also labeled the organs he removed from her body, and Sargent said he put a cross in her vagina.

Other parts of Jessica's body were found in an Arvada field, days after she was kidnapped. Salter also testified that Sigg's mother found child pornography on his computer in 2008.

Sigg acted against the advice of his defense team, and plead guilty to killing and dismembering the fifth-grader after kidnapping her on her way to school on October 5, 2012.

Horror: Police discovered Jessica's body in a field off of a highway. It had been severely dismembered by Sigg, who admitted he killed her

According to pre-trial hearings, as well as Sigg's own admissions to investigators made after his arrest, there were plenty of warning signs indicating that the troubled mortuary science student was on a dangerous path.

At age 16, Sigg has developed an obsession with hard-core child pornography and spent a year watching violent videos depicting kids being tortured and raped.

Defense attorney Katherine Spengler told how Sigg's mother often inhaled paint in the late stages of her pregnancy and fell down the stairs once shortly before he was born.

Spengler said Sigg was born with an abnormality in his intestines, and that his birth by vacuum extraction also caused him to have a head deformity. She said he had several surgeries before he turned 6.

In May 2012, four months before the teen decided to fulfill some of his sickening fantasies by kidnapping little Jessica on her way to school, Sigg unsuccessfully tried to snatch a female jogger in Ketner Lake.

Jessica was snatched off the street while walking to school, and her disappearance panicked thousands of residents in Denver's western suburbs.

After Sigg pleaded guilty, the prosecution described how Sigg grabbed Jessica, pulled her into his car and tied up her hands and feet.

Jessica Ridgeway's mother Sarah Ridgeway left the courtroom earlier this month as prosecutors described the horrors committed against her daughter by Sigg

Somber mood: District attorney Peter Weir, second from right, and members of his staff leave the courtroom after Austin Sigg plead guilty to killing 10-year-old Jessica

Jessica, a fifth-grader who loved purple and performing in a peewee cheerleading squad, left home to walk to school in Westminster on October 5, 2012. She never made it there.

Hundreds of people helped search for her. Jessica's backpack was found two days later in Superior, a town about six miles from her home. Days after that, human remains later identified as Jessica's were found in a park.

Authorities, meanwhile, urged residents to watch for any suspicious changes in neighbors' behavior. Officers guarded crosswalks and photographed cars in the area.

Parents escorted their children to and from area schools. Mailboxes and trees were encircled by ribbons in Jessica's favorite color, purple.

On October 19, 2012, a resident contacted authorities to alert them to Sigg because he reportedly had a fascination with death, Westminster police Detective Luis Lopez testified at a preliminary hearing. FBI agents took a DNA sample from Sigg.

On October 23, Sigg's mother, Mindy Sigg, called 911, saying her son wanted to confess.

Investigators said Sigg told them some of Jessica's remains were hidden in a crawl space in his mother's home, where he lived.

They said Sigg described how he abducted Jessica as she walked past his car. He said he bound her arms and her legs, drove around for a little bit, then took her to his house.

There, he told investigators, Sigg tried to strangle the girl and then used his hands to kill her. He also allegedly told investigators that he dismembered Jessica in a bathtub.

Lopez said Sigg's DNA was found on Jessica's clothing.

Sigg dropped out of high school after the 11th grade and later earned a GED. Former classmates say he was intelligent but complained about school and was bullied for having a high voice.

When asked about his criminal record on the 911 call, Sigg told the dispatcher: 'The only other thing that I have done was the Ketner Lake incident where the woman got attacked. That was me.'

In the attack on the jogger, investigator Michael Lynch testified that Sigg used homemade chloroform to attempt to subdue the woman. She escaped.


Monster: Austin Sigg, 18, had spent a year watching violent child pornography depicting kids being raped and tortured before he kidnapped and butchered 10-year-old Jessica Ridgeway last year

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2510101/Austin-Sigg-killed-dismembered-girl-10-gets-life-sentence-plus-86-years.html

He still should have gotten the death penalty despite his age.  He could escape or be released accidently and kill again.  We recently had two convicts released that were mistakes.  Death is final.  William

Evidence details twisted path that led Austin Sigg to Jessica Ridgeway

By Jordan Steffen, The Denver Post
Posted:   12/01/2013 12:01:00 AM MST15 comments
Updated:   12/02/2013 12:46:20 AM MST

Like many children, Jessica Ridgeway was told to be wary of strangers. She was urged to scream if someone tried to grab her.

Those warnings are reflected in a notebook the fifth-grader kept in her desk at school. For a class assignment, she jotted down the four kinds of sentences. In both tiny and oversized letters, she wrote an example of an imperative sentence:

"Do not play at the park alone."

And an exclamatory sentence:

"Watch out for strangers!"

Just over a mile away from Jessica's tree-lined suburban neighborhood in Westminster, Austin Sigg grew up with an early fascination with pornography and mortuary science. His parents sent him to a faith-based counselor in an effort to set him back on the right path.

The events on the morning of Oct. 5, 2012, taught a terrifying lesson to parents everywhere. Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, the world can take your child away.

Final hours

In her final moments of freedom, Jessica scooped up handfuls of fresh snow and packed them into a snowball.

Down the block, in his Jeep parked where he knew no one could see him, Sigg watched the 10-year-old carry the snowball toward him. He waited until she reached the end of the sidewalk and had to cross the street.

He watched, slumped on the gray leather seats in the back of his gold vehicle, as she turned and began walking past.

When Sigg sprang from the Jeep, Jessica screamed, but no one heard her.

The details of Jessica's final hours are known only by her killer. But documents, court testimony, interviews with prosecutors and newly released videotaped statements from Sigg outline the intersection of a troubled 17-year-old and a happy girl just after she left her home at 8:35 a.m.

The evidence shows Sigg as an adept and callous liar, whose chilling confessions may have been understatements or outright fiction.

After his arrest, Sigg spent hours describing to investigators what he says was a crime at a "random place, random time, random everything." His defense attorneys argued that his actions were impulsive and that he struggled to understand them.

But prosecutors and court testimony suggest Sigg, who pleaded guilty to all of the charges against him on Oct. 1, spent months planning and studying, searching the Internet for chloroform recipes and the "Top Ten Places People Get Abducted." Sigg's confidence in his method, however, may have led to some of his greatest missteps.

And Sigg's confidence in investigator's methods — he believed they already had linked his DNA to Jessica's murder and an attack on a jogger at Ketner Lake — turned out to be another mistake.

Only when Sigg surrendered did he and authorities discover the error that lab technicians had made in handling the DNA sample he had brashly offered to investigators. An error that said Sigg had been cleared.

Kind and caring

Jessica loved to make up dances and giggled at words she made up and hummed to melodies. Her bright-blue eyes were never lost behind her purple glasses.

At Witt Elementary School, the joyous little girl was loved by her teachers and classmates. She spent her last morning peeling an orange with her mother and eating a granola bar for breakfast.
Jessica Ridgeway did school assignments in a notebook found in her desk. "Watch out for strangers!" she wrote as an example of an exclamatory sentence. (Jefferson County District Attorney's Office, The Denver Post)

Sigg's elementary school teachers also described him as kind and caring, according to testimony from his attorneys.

But by age 12, Sigg was viewing child pornography and was sent to therapy. By Sigg's own admission, the sessions did little and his addiction quietly grew over the years, until he was viewing violent images of children being raped, strangled and dismembered.

Sigg's interest in mortuary science struck some as odd, but not alarming. In his interview with investigators, Sigg's younger brother recalled a "slightly creepy comment" his brother made about one of his classes in which he "was learning how to kill people and be able to get away with it," according to a report by Anna Salter, a psychologist who testified for the prosecution.

A friend of Mindy Sigg, Austin's mother, later recalled conversations the women had before Jessica was kidnapped. Mindy Sigg joked about her son's interest in body decomposition and said she had helped Sigg practice restraining someone with zip ties, said Chief Deputy District Attorney Hal Sargent.

Sigg's girlfriend would later tell investigators he stayed at her house one night a week, Sargent said. Mindy Sigg told detectives her son was gone up to four nights a week. No one is sure where he was the other three nights.

"What he does in the part of his life he keeps hidden — that's what you make ghost stories out of," Sargent said.

In the weeks before Jessica's death, Sigg went out "hunting," driving his Jeep around neighborhoods.

"Anytime I would even see someone out walking while I was in one of those modes, my heart would instantly start beating really fast," Sigg told investigators in an interview they videotaped.

Four months before Sigg took Jessica, he tried to kidnap a woman jogging at Ketner Lake by shoving a chloroform-soaked rag in her face. The woman was able to fight him off and call police.

Still, Sigg said he learned from his first try. Months later, he went looking for someone smaller. Someone he could overpower.

"I would lie to her"

Sigg found Jessica walking to school, less than a thousand feet from her front door.

He lunged from the back seat of his Jeep and grabbed the little girl — whom he says he had never seen before. Sigg pulled her into the back seat and bound her feet and hands with zip ties.

Jessica asked him who he was. Did he know her mom?

"She kept asking me questions. I would answer them and I would lie to her," Sigg said. "I would tell her that everything was going to be OK. I would just lie to her."

As Sigg carried Jessica up to his room, the little girl who loved animals saw cat boxes. She asked about the cats, and then asked what he was going to do to her.

Investigators aren't sure whether the wisps of compassion Sigg says he showed her — cutting the zip ties off her wrists, playing cartoons for her, assuring her she'd see her mother again — actually happened or were more lies.

In his room, Sigg said he stared at Jessica before he made her change out of her urine-soaked clothes and stuff her belongings into her backpack. He gave her a white shirt and black shorts from his closet.

Then, he said, he told her to turn away from him — and then he strangled her. He dismembered her body and initially hid her remains in a pool shed behind his house.

Jessica was dead before her mom called 911 that afternoon.

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_24631031/evidence-details-twisted-path-that-led-austin-sigg#ixzz2mWWaWLWJ

Ridgeway's school: 'We are stronger'

Anastasiya Bolton, KUSA
4:48 p.m. MDT May 13, 2014

WESTMINSTER – It's rare to have a classroom of sixth-graders who have all experienced the same tragedy. But for Jessica Ridgeway's classmates, every day is a reminder of how they will never forget her bright smile and infectious laugh. And what the school has done to help them cope with their loss is inspiring.

Mrs. Shelia Grice's fifth-grade Witt Elementary class is more organized than you could ever imagine. A 30-year veteran teacher has a gentle, but forceful way of managing the bright-eyed bunch. Her southern drawl almost coos the students into submission.

"I would so deeply appreciate it [if] you get yourself ready," Grice said. "[Today,] we are thanking people who have helped us."

It's a project, one of many this year, designed to bring the school together. Today, Grice's fifth graders are helping second graders make footprints with a thank-you message for someone special.

The second- and fifth-grade footprints will be placed on a mountain in the school's main hallway. The mountain has a slogan from Nelson Mandela, "It always seems impossible until it's done."

"We are climbing to the top of the mountain today," Grice told her class. "If you have any trouble, ask for help."

Grice has been climbing a proverbial mountain over the last 19 months, ever since her new student Jessica Ridgeway vanished one October morning.

"I stopped breathing that day when the Golden police officer said they were beginning to worry that someone had taken her," Grice said. "The only thing I could think of is coming into this classroom and doing my very best to help comfort the children."

When Jessica vanished, Grice said the world "responded with a hug."

"It's a big mountain to climb, I might add," Grice said. "This is if I'm trying to climb a 14er, I take a few steps, and then I sit down to catch my breath. That's what I've actually done for the past year."

This past year has been hard for everyone in the school. What helped Grice and the entire Witt community get through it is being together.

"I think we've made a lot of progress," she said. "I've given and received many many hugs."

That's why the theme for the entire school year is "togetherness." The footsteps for the little ones, and "thank you" flags for six grade are a part of the effort to bring everyone together.

"Who has helped you with your work this year?" Grice asked her students working on the cut out contours of their feet. "Who's been a good friend to you?"

Kindergarten teacher Colleen Hays says it's the good friends at Witt that got her through the last months, and the difficult moments that still hit her.

"We've had a lot of obstacles. It's been hard," Hays said. "There are days when it just hits you, and you can't catch your breath. But the reason why we did this and we're putting that one name on there [footprint], there is always that one person who got to you that day, made you smile and helped you along your journey."

Nine-year-old Rebecca Cook said she wanted to thank Ms. Jill.

"Ms. Jill likes looking at the sky," Rebecca said, while drawing the sky on her paper footprint.

The second grader can't remember what the mountain is about.

"Sometimes I have a hard time remembering things," she said.

But for Jessica's friends in sixth grade, the grade she would've been in this year, the mountain is a symbol of many obstacles overcome.

"No matter what us sixth graders do, we always have [Jessica] in it," said Jessica's friend Eavie Higgins. "Because we always think of her when we do stuff here."

"At first, it was sad and depressing," said Jessica's friend Kylie Magdaleno, "But everyone knows now that she's always still there, and she just runs down the halls all the time. It's changed in a way of loving [each other] even more."

For the latest Jessica Ridgeway news, please visit http://www.jessicaridgeway.com/.

http://www.9news.com/story/news/local/9news-evenings/2014/05/13/jessica-ridgeways-classmates/9044349/