Overview

Last seen: October 2, 2002, at or around Dodge Correctional Institution in Waupun, Wisconsin. Records cited in a 2026 review indicate Strege’s telephone and financial activity continued into October 3. Some databases use September 23 or October 1 as a date of last contact, creating differences among published records.

Age when missing: 43

Status: Missing; the circumstances of his disappearance have not been determined.

NamUs: MP55794

Doe Network: 6572DMWI

Main circumstances: Strege stopped reporting to work and missed a golf tournament he had planned to attend. His apartment was later found unlocked, with the television and lights on. His belongings remained there, and his car and motorcycle were still in the garage. Investigators have considered multiple possibilities, including foul play, suicide, an accident, or Strege intentionally leaving, but authorities have not publicly established what happened.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Jerrold Darold Strege Missing Person Case: Waupun, Wisconsin — 2002

Jerrold “Jerry” Darold Strege was 43 years old when he disappeared from Waupun, Wisconsin, in October 2002. More than two decades later, there has been no confirmed contact with him, and his disappearance remains an active unsolved missing-person case.

The longtime correctional officer seemingly vanished while leaving behind his vehicles and many of his personal belongings. His disappearance was especially concerning to friends because Strege, an avid and accomplished golfer, failed to attend a tournament he had reportedly been looking forward to playing.

Very Brief Case Summary

Last seen: October 2, 2002, at or around Dodge Correctional Institution in Waupun, Wisconsin. Records cited in a 2026 review indicate Strege’s telephone and financial activity continued into October 3. Some databases use September 23 or October 1 as a date of last contact, creating differences among published records.

Age when missing: 43

Status: Missing; the circumstances of his disappearance have not been determined.

NamUs: MP55794

Doe Network: 6572DMWI

Main circumstances: Strege stopped reporting to work and missed a golf tournament he had planned to attend. His apartment was later found unlocked, with the television and lights on. His belongings remained there, and his car and motorcycle were still in the garage. Investigators have considered multiple possibilities, including foul play, suicide, an accident, or Strege intentionally leaving, but authorities have not publicly established what happened.

The Disappearance of Jerrold “Jerry” Strege

Jerrold Strege worked as a correctional officer in Waupun. The Wisconsin Department of Justice currently lists him as missing from Waupun on October 2, 2002, and Waupun Police say investigators determined that he was seen at Dodge Correctional Institution on his last day of work that date.

Strege had worked at Dodge Correctional Institution for years and was reportedly working as a tower guard around the time he disappeared.

A detailed 2026 review of the case reported that Strege clocked in at Dodge Correctional Institution on October 2. His father had last heard from him on October 1, while Strege’s last outgoing telephone calls and financial activity continued into October 3. Police Chief Jeremy Rasch said investigators have little information about what happened between that activity and the discovery that Strege was missing several days later.

A Golf Tournament He Never Attended

Golf was an important part of Strege’s life. He regularly played with friends and participated in amateur tournaments.

Strege had taken time away from work and was expected to participate in a golf tournament on October 5 and 6, 2002. He never arrived.

His absence immediately concerned people who knew him. According to Rasch, it would have been highly unusual for Strege to simply skip a golf tournament.

Strege was then scheduled to return to work on October 8. He did not report for duty and did not call his employer.

His Father Goes to the Apartment

After Strege stopped answering his telephone, his father went to check his apartment on October 9.

What he discovered offered few answers.

The apartment was unlocked. The television was still on and reportedly tuned to the Golf Channel. Lights were on, and Strege’s possessions remained inside. Published accounts identify his wallet, keys and cell phone among the belongings left behind.

His car and motorcycle were also still at the apartment complex.

Police reported finding no apparent signs of a disturbance inside the residence.

Strege’s father formally reported him missing on October 11, 2002.

Searches Produce No Sign of Strege

Police, firefighters, correctional officers, volunteers, search teams and canine teams participated in searches for Strege.

Searchers examined areas near his apartment and workplace as well as locations around Waupun. Investigators also focused attention on the Horicon Marsh, an enormous wetland area that Strege knew through hunting and outdoor activities.

The investigation did not end with the initial searches.

According to the 2026 case review, investigators later revisited earlier search locations, including places where cadaver dogs had shown interest. Golf courses were reconsidered, and state teams assisted with searches of the Horicon Marsh using ground-penetrating radar.

Authorities even drained an entire quarry during one search. Strege had frequented the area when he was younger, and investigators considered whether it could have been visible from his guard tower.

Despite the extensive searches, authorities have not announced the discovery of Strege or evidence conclusively explaining his disappearance.

The Missing .357-Caliber Gun

One detail investigators continue to consider involves a firearm.

During later reviews of the investigation, police searched for anything potentially connected with Strege, including remains, clothing and a .357-caliber firearm.

According to Chief Rasch, ammunition for the weapon was found in Strege’s apartment, but the corresponding gun was not there.

The missing firearm does not by itself establish what happened. Police continue to consider several possibilities rather than publicly attributing Strege’s disappearance to a single theory.

Investigators Consider Several Possibilities

Waupun Police have examined the possibility that Strege was the victim of foul play. They have also considered whether he died by suicide, suffered an accident or deliberately left his previous life.

None of those possibilities has been publicly established as the explanation for his disappearance.

One theory discussed over the years involved the Horicon Marsh, where Strege reportedly hunted. Friends wondered whether he could have gone into the marsh and suffered an accident or died there. Searches, however, have not produced evidence publicly confirming that theory.

Investigators have also checked unidentified remains discovered in other jurisdictions in hopes of determining whether they could be Strege.

The 1983 Prison Riot

Investigators also reviewed a traumatic incident from Strege’s earlier career.

Before working at Dodge Correctional Institution, Strege worked at Waupun Correctional Institution. During a prison riot in 1983, he was reportedly held hostage by inmates for approximately 10 hours.

His father later told the Fond du Lac Reporter that Strege’s personality appeared to change after the ordeal.

Because of the severity of the incident, police examined whether anyone involved in the riot might somehow have been connected to Strege’s disappearance nearly two decades later.

According to Chief Rasch in 2026, investigators found that Strege had not maintained contact with those involved, and many of the people connected with the riot had died by the time Strege disappeared. Authorities have not announced evidence connecting the riot to his disappearance.

Latest Investigation Information

Nearly 24 years after Strege vanished, Waupun Police were still actively seeking information about him in 2026.

Chief Jeremy Rasch, who was a young officer when Strege disappeared, told the Fond du Lac Reporter that investigators had continued reviewing the case and searching for potential leads.

The department has reexamined old search areas, reconsidered locations associated with Strege, reviewed places where search dogs previously showed interest and worked with other agencies.

Strege’s information has also been entered into national and regional law-enforcement systems. Rasch said his records are in FBI databases, including the Combined DNA Index System, or CODIS, as well as the Mid-States Organized Crime Information Center.

Police have contacted other agencies when unidentified remains have been discovered to determine whether there could be a connection.

The case received additional exposure in January 2025 when the Doe Network added Jerrold Darold Strege to its missing-person database as case 6572DMWI.

As of September 2026, the Wisconsin Department of Justice also continued to publicly list Strege among Wisconsin’s missing persons.

No arrest, confirmed recovery of Strege’s remains or definitive explanation for his disappearance has been publicly announced.

Nearly 24 Years Without Answers

Strege’s parents have since died, but other relatives and people who knew him continue to live without knowing what happened.

For Chief Rasch, the case has spanned almost his entire law-enforcement career. In the September 2026 review, he said finding Strege and providing answers to his surviving loved ones remained an important goal.

Jerrold Strege would now be in his late 60s.

Anyone who remembers something about Strege’s activities in late September or early October 2002 — even information that seemed insignificant at the time — is encouraged to contact law enforcement.

The disappearance remains unsolved.