The Disappearance of James Yoblonski - Case Breakdown

On June 12, 2023, **13-year-old James Yoblonski** quietly left his rural Wisconsin home in the middle of the night.

He packed two duffel bags and a backpack, took his father’s cellphone, climbed into the family minivan despite having virtually no road-driving experience, and disappeared into the darkness.

Hours later, the van was found abandoned roughly 16 miles from home near the **Baraboo Bluffs** along U.S. Highway 12.

The keys were still inside. The window was down. James was gone.

Searchers later found some of James’s clothing, bags, hygiene supplies and his father’s cellphone in nearby woods.

But several important things were missing:

* James himself
* A .380-caliber handgun taken from a safe at his father’s business
* A large duffel bag
* Another cellphone James may have had access to

Three years later, none have been found.

In this episode of **True Crime Unsolved**, Sean Cahill and Myles Reiff break down one of Wisconsin’s strangest active missing-person cases.

Security footage and cellphone data reportedly helped investigators reconstruct part of James’s route that night. After leaving home shortly before 1:00 a.m., the van traveled to his father Bill’s business, headed toward Baraboo, then **returned to the business a second time** before ultimately ending up near the Baraboo Bluffs.

Why did James go back?

Was he retrieving something?

Was he meeting someone?

Was another person involved?

Then there is the disturbing **Snapchat video** James reportedly posted that night. In it, he says the people who care about him are not to blame and appears frightened and emotionally distressed — but never clearly explains what he intends to do.

James’s father, **Bill Yoblonski**, believes the language in the video sounded unlike his son and has questioned whether James may have been repeating words supplied by someone else. Bill has also questioned whether a hand briefly visible near the steering wheel belongs to James.

Those are Bill’s interpretations, not established facts.

As of September 2026, **James Yoblonski remains missing**. He would now be 16 years old.

The Wisconsin Department of Justice continues to list James as a **missing endangered child**, and there is a **$10,000 reward** for information in the case.

If you have genuine information about James’s disappearance or current whereabouts, please contact the **Sauk County Sheriff’s Office** or the **Wisconsin Department of Justice Missing Persons Clearinghouse**.

Next week, we sit down with James’s father, **Bill Yoblonski**, for an in-depth interview about the night his son vanished and why Bill believes there is much more to this story.

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## ABOUT TRUE CRIME UNSOLVED

Hosted by **Sean Cahill and Myles Reiff**, True Crime Unsolved investigates missing persons, suspicious deaths, cold cases and unresolved mysteries through interviews, public records, independent research and long-form analysis.

## DISCLAIMER

This episode discusses an active missing-person case involving a minor

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