Jennifer was reportedly last seen leaving her family's residence at Holly Hills Mobile Home Park in the 1400 block of north Fort Bragg Boulevard in Spring Lake, North Carolina. She planned to walk to a neighbor's home at approximately 1:15 p.m. She never arrived at her destination and has not been heard from again. She was reported missing at 6:00 p.m. Extensive searches of the area did not produce any evidence as to her whereabouts. Jennifer's parents were divorced but were still living together. Her father, Alan Patterson, failed a polygraph exam following his daughter's disappearance. Police said there was no evidence that Jennifer ever left her home that day. Alan was involved in a custody dispute over Jennifer at the time of her disappearance, and he was scheduled to take a paternity test. Authorities now call Alan their prime suspect in his daughter's case. The mobile home park where she lived has since been abandoned. She was last seen wearing a one-piece bathing suit with orange, yellow, pink and turquoise squares and squiggle shapes. She was 7 years old at the time.