The mother of a missing Wisconsin father of two is asking for the public’s help in the investigation into his suspicious disappearance.
Rosalio Gutierrez Jr., 40, has not been seen or heard from since May 17, 2020. Rosalio is known to close friends as “Junior” and is loved by many.
His mother Selia Patterson is hopeful that someone can provide information to help investigators in her son’s case.
“Someone, somewhere knows something,” Selia Patterson told Dateline. “He was the best son a mom could ever wish for, he was a loving father, and a very good friend,” she added through tears.
Rosalio was last seen on May 17 and failed to show up to work on May 18 and 19, according to court documents obtained by Dateline. The court documents went on to state that a woman whom Rosalio had been dating conducted a welfare check at his home on May 19 where she found large amounts of blood. Both of Rosalio’s cars were parked outside of the apartment and the patio door was open. According to court documents, it appeared that things in the apartment had been moved around. The woman called the police who responded to the scene.
“It appeared that there was some type of physical altercation that had occurred inside the apartment,”
Lieutenant Joseph Nosalik, Public Information officer for the Kenosha Police Department, told Dateline.
Lieutenant Nosalik confirmed that the Kenosha Police Department continues to investigate Rosalio’s suspicious disappearance.
On May 20, 39-year-old Zachariah Anderson, the alleged ex-boyfriend of the woman Rosalio was dating, was arrested on stalking charges. Lieutenant Nosalik said that his arrest is not officially connected to Rosalio’s disappearance at this time. According to court documents, Anderson had allegedly engaged in stalking behavior of both Rosalio and the woman he was dating. She reported concerns about Zachariah Anderson’s previous stalking behavior on the day she discovered Rosalio had disappeared.
Rosalio’s mother Selia, who graduated with her master’s degree in Criminology in December and works for the Colorado Springs District Attorney’s Office, told Dateline that as painful as it is, she says she is not optimistic about the outcome of her son’s case after seeing the scene at his apartment.
“My son is not just missing,” said Selia, adding that the experience of losing her son is more painful without answers or closure.
Selia said she raised Rosalio as a single mom until he was 10. Rosalio grew up in Wisconsin and studied criminal justice and sociology at the University of Wisconsin. Most recently, he worked as a contractor and flipped houses in his spare time.
What he loved most when he wasn’t working, Selia said, was time with his two children, ages eight and eleven. He was an avid baseball player and passed that love along to his son. Rosalio was helping to coach his young son’s baseball team at the time of his disappearance. Selia nicknamed him “Pocho” at a young age and says the name stuck.
“Pocho was a very good father,” Selia said. “He did so much for his children.” She has been working remotely from Wisconsin in order to be closer to her grandchildren, take her grandson to baseball games and help both children navigate this difficult time.
Rosalio’s Facebook page is filled with friends and strangers sharing information about his disappearance and wishes for his safe return.
“We are still looking and still missing our friend...someone? Anyone? Speak up so we can get not only all his countless friends he has but especially his mother some closures/answers....no one deserves not to know where their son, father or friend is,” wrote one friend.
Selia wants people to know that her son was a good person and always made her smile.
“He always had me cracking up. He was a very wonderful person,” Selia said. “Most of all, he was a good human being and needed to be on this earth much longer than when he was taken.”
“We hope and pray for his family that we do locate him somewhere healthy, but the realization is that there are more than likely suspicious circumstances surrounding his disappearance,” Lieutenant Nosalik said.
Kenosha Police continue to investigate Rosalio’s case and encourage anyone with information to call the Kenosha Police Detective Bureau at 262-605-5203.