Jesse was last seen in South River, New Jersey on January 20, 1998. He has never been heard from again. He may be with his non-custodial mother, Christina Mitchell. A photo and vital statistics for Mitchell are posted below. A felony warrant was issued for her on January 21, 2000.

Jesse's father, Ronnie Kaslov, is a Gypsy (also known as a Romany) and obtained a divorce from Mitchell under Gypsy law. While they were fighting over custody of Jesse, Ronnie was allowed to see him for supervised visits two hours a week. Mitchell and her parents fled with Jesse before the custody issue could be resolved.

Ronnie has accused police of not properly investigating Jesse's abduction because the family are Gypsies. Authorities stated that they have tried to find Jesse, but the Gypsy lifestyle makes it difficult. American Gypsies are an insular group who typically withdraw their children from school after the eighth grade and do not have birth certificates or bank accounts, and they are not counted in most censuses. Ronnie is not legally married to Christina under United States law and authorities stated they were not even certain he is Jesse's biological father.

Investigators stated they talked to Mitchell's family members and all of them claimed they had not heard from her or Jesse. Jesse and Mitchell are probably using aliases. The child's case remains unsolved.