On the afternoon of Friday, Sept. 4, 1987, 9-year-old Jessica Murphy disappeared from her cul-de-sac in the quiet, peaceful Willow Creek neighborhood of Omaha, Nebraska.

One minute, she was whizzing around the court on her Space Invaders edition BMX bicycle with red streamers flowing off the handle bars and a sparkly red banana seat. 

And the next, she was simply gone.

Jessica remained missing for decades, as investigators considered suspects ranging from neighborhood boys to traveling serial killers. Who could have taken Jessica? They had no idea. 

But in January 2026, something incredible happened. 

A viral TikTok reel made by one of Jessica's own relatives brought new light to this case and led to a confession and then a discovery that re-opened this case and turned this quiet suburban community upside down all over again.

This is Crime Adjacent episode 586: The Murder of Jessica Murphy, told live in Detroit during our tour.

OK, profilers. Can you solve an unsolvable murder?

Join host and serial killer survivor Chase Patrick live on stage for Crime Adjacent, the world’s biggest true crime podcast. Every week, at shows across the country, Chase reopens the most haunting, enduring mysteries from the grim underbelly of American true crime and challenges you to solve them.

“An atmospheric and immersive podcast where true crime and psychological thrillers intersect.” — Earworthy

From the Zodiac to the Rest Stop Killer, the Michigan Nightstalker to the Cross Country Killer, each episode unfolds like a real investigation — like the whip smart, nerdy love child of Murder, She Wrote and War of the Worlds — and dares you to unravel the mystery and provide justice for those who need it most.

It looks like a true crime podcast. It sounds like a true crime podcast. But what happens when the cosmology of our escapist entertainment looks terrifyingly like our real world? That’s Crime Adjacent. It’s a fully scripted, intimate, locked-room mystery that pulls back the curtain on our social obsession with true crime and what this fascination with humanity’s darkest impulses says about … us.

“Crime Adjacent is redefining the true crime genre.” — Podcasting Today

Crime Adjacent is written and performed by Mike Adamick, a former crime reporter turned contributor for NPR, The New York Times, and McSweeney’s. He uses degrees in sociology and gender studies from UC Berkeley, along with an obsession with criminal profiling, true crime, and Jessica Fletcher, to explore why people commit crimes, why we are enthralled with them, and who, ultimately, pays the price.

So listen closely, profilers. Because with every episode, a new crime is afoot and every detail matters.

It’s not crime. It’s Crime Adjacent. 

New live shows every Wednesday from theaters across America.

Weekly live behind the scenes insights for Crime Adjacent insiders at Patreon -- http://www.patreon.com/crimeadjacent 

Instagram -- https://www.instagram.com/crimeadjacent

Web site -- www.crimeadjacent.com

Crime Adjacent is produced & edited by Multitude.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.