HOUSTON – Authorities are actively searching for 19-year-old Jessica Hutto, who went missing from San Antonio last week. Her family believes her disappearance may be linked to an online game, and local authorities have joined the investigation.

Missing in Texas: Jessica Hutto

Jessica Hutto (Photo courtesy of family)

What they’re saying:

Jessica Hutto was last seen a week ago, according to her parents, who reported her missing after she left home without her wallet, phone, and laptop. 

“It’s been terrifying, unbearable,” said her mother, Michelle Hutto. “I don’t get much sleep. I don’t eat much. All I can think about is her and where she’s at and if she needs me.”

Her father, Chris Hutto, expressed concern over her sudden departure. “We’re worried because she didn’t take anything. She left her bank card, her phone, her computer. Like this. Not normal.”

The San Antonio Police Department is actively investigating the case. 

Jessica’s parents revealed she was diagnosed with anxiety and depression and had unplugged all the cameras at home before leaving.

Michelle Hutto noted, “The fact that all her stuff is here, you know, her jewelry, her bank card, her devices, they feel that that was circumstance enough to say that she is a missing person, and then they’re going to assign it to a detective and also connect with Houston Police Department to be able to join.”

Jessica’s parents managed to access her phone, discovering the last contact was with someone in Houston, whom she met through online gaming. 

Chris Hutto expressed concern about potential trafficking, saying, “Possibly, yes, because it’s through a gaming system. And that’s one of the biggest stresses where you’re worried about is, like, she got influenced off of a game that come to Houston out of the blue. And this is not a friend, this is not somebody we’ve met.”

The family is pleading for public assistance. 

“Please let us know that she’s okay and, if she needs help, please help her and just contact us because that’s all we want to know that our daughter is safe,” said Michelle Hutto.

Chris Hutto added, “We love her and miss her so much, and that nobody’s mad at her for leaving or nothing like that. We just want her to be safe.”

Dangers of online gaming

Dig deeper:

FOX 26 spoke with Leemie Kahng-Sofer, the Director of Case Management, with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, and she said this is a rising concern.

“We have seen an explosion of online enticement just in terms of the cyber tip line reports that we’ve seen, and we’ve certainly seen missing children as a result of online communications that children or teenagers have had, with suspects who are very well aware of how to groom the children,” Kahng-Sofer said. “You’re still gaming with strangers who are out there, the suspects, the groomers, they know, how to groom the children. And sometimes it goes from a gaming application to another app where they start communicating, with then ultimately ends up with the suspect picking up the child or the child leaving to go be with the suspect,” she continued.

Kahng-Sofer advised parents to be involved in their children’s lives and always communicate with their kids and, if they’re teenagers, then she advised parents to provide guidance but to not do it in a punitive or overly judgmental way. 

“Set some ground rules, have open communication with their child or teenager. Parents, make sure that you are communicating constantly with one another,” Kahng-Sofer said. 

The NCMEC has free online resources to help parents navigate this space with their children.

What you can do:

Anyone with information on Jessica Hutto’s whereabouts is urged to contact the San Antonio Police Department’s Missing Persons Unit at (210) 207-7660 or Houston Police Department’s Missing Persons Unit at (832) 394-1840.

The Source: FOX 26’s Jonathan Mejia spoke with Jessica and Chris Hutto, reached out to SAPD and HPD, and spoke with Leemie Kahng-Sofer with the NCMEC.

Missing PersonsHouston Police DepartmentHoustonCrime and Public SafetyTexas