Inside the Crowded Halls of CrimeCon
The constant buzz of the crowd fills a Las Vegas convention hall where podcasters mingle with prosecutors. Attendees sport T-shirts with slogans such as "True Crime And Wine" or "I'm Only Here For An Alibi," carrying conference bags stamped with the phrase "unsolved crime is a choice."
Among the rows of booths, one woman stands apart, gazing stoically at photos of her murdered daughter as people pass by.
All present are attending CrimeCon, an annual event that gathers true-crime enthusiasts, content creators, investigators, advocates, survivors, and relatives of victims.
For many, including Dr Maggie Zingman, a trauma psychologist and mother, the reasons for attending are deeply personal.
A Mother's Unyielding Search for Answers
In 2004, Dr Zingman's daughter, Brittany Phillips, was murdered, and the case remains unsolved. Zingman has made over two dozen cross-country trips in a pink and purple wrapped vehicle to raise awareness about her daughter's case, with CrimeCon being one of her stops.
"It's a balance," Zingman says. "I wouldn't get 8,000 people learning about my story if it wasn't here."
The Rise of True Crime Obsession and CrimeCon
For more than a decade, America has been captivated by true crime. Experts cite pivotal podcasts like 2014's Serial and docuseries such as The Jinx and Making a Murderer from 2015 as catalysts for the genre's surge.
CrimeCon has expanded alongside this trend. The inaugural 2017 event attracted 800 attendees; by 2018, attendance rose to 2,400, according to co-founder Kevin Balfe. This year, 6,500 people attended, with some paying over $1,600 for VIP experiences.
"Over the years, we've had people who show up expecting this to be serial-killer this and that, and they just realise quickly this event's not for them. And we ultimately have curated an audience of people who, I think, really care,"Balfe said.
Balancing Advocacy and Commercialization
As the genre has grown, criticism has increased regarding the focus on perpetrators rather than victims and the ethical concerns of profiting from others' tragedies.
CrimeCon attempts to navigate this fine line. Parents of Gabby Petito, whose murder by her boyfriend during a cross-country van trip sparked a nationwide manhunt, maintain a booth promoting their foundation supporting missing persons and domestic violence prevention.
"From the first year that we came here, we saw a lot of growth in terms of who's going to come,"said Joe Petito, who first attended in 2023. He noted organizations like the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the Black and Missing Foundation use CrimeCon to raise awareness.
"The event does a really good job of toeing the line... for pushing the advocacy side and not the exploitative side of victims and their families and loved ones,"he added.
Event Atmosphere and Attendee Engagement
Near the entrance to CrimeCon 2026, a wall displays missing persons posters alongside a sign titled "8 Simple Rules for Being an ETHICAL True Crime Fanatic." A short walk away, a merchandise store sells CrimeCon-branded gifts, shot glasses, and $80 sweatshirts. Staff encourage attendees to register for next year or join the CrimeCon Cruise.
Some attendees embrace the theme fully; one woman wears skin-tight crime-scene-tape leggings, while two friends showcase homemade crime-scene-tape bags lined with blood-spatter fabric.
The predominantly female crowd eagerly takes selfies with hosts and TV personalities like Nancy Grace, who discusses theories on Nancy Guthrie's disappearance. Others queue for meet-and-greets with the parents of Kaylee Goncalves, the University of Idaho student murdered by Bryan Kohberger. Some pay extra to attend the Clue Awards, honoring the best in true-crime content. This year's Crimefighter of the Year award was presented to three Jeffrey Epstein survivors and their associated nonprofit.
Motivations Behind Attendance
Many attendees cite intrigue as a draw. Ruth-Ann Labrecque, 52, traveled from Maine for her sixth CrimeCon with her aunt, Roberta Randall, 67. Introduced to true crime by Labrecque's grandmother, they lined up early for merchandise after spending approximately $3,000 each on the trip.
Others attend out of concern for safety. Brandi Barrett Elkins, 53, from Idaho, explained:
"You want to learn what happened so you'll know how to recognise it."
Elkins recalled learning about crime from her mother and said,
"I know for a fact if somebody came up to me with a broken arm and asked me to help them load a sailboat, aka Ted Bundy, I would be like: 'Mmmm, sorry dude.'"
Illinois teacher Amy Dixon expressed a similar sentiment, wondering if her fascination stems from a desire to prepare herself:
"Trying to make sure I know all the things I could do in case it ever happens to me."
Dixon, a mother of three who created a CSI summer camp for students, noted,
"It can happen anywhere."
She spent about $1,200 on a "platinum" badge, obtained at a discount, marking her third CrimeCon with upgrades each time. Her husband accompanied her to Vegas, playing poker while she attended the convention, which has very few male attendees.
One male attendee is 71-year-old Texan Jim McConnell, who came with his youth-pastor wife, Susan.
"She's got me watching 20/20 and Dateline,"McConnell said.
"I didn't know half the people here, but... once I heard them, it's just amazing. I really enjoyed it."
Susan McConnell has wanted to attend CrimeCon for years, drawn not only by fascination with the genre but also by the opportunity to bring attention to a local cold case: the murder of Missy Bevers in a Texas church near their home. A photo of Bevers appears on Susan's T-shirt.
"I was hoping to talk to some of the podcasters about her case,"Susan said.
"I'm glad that she's getting some more exposure."
First-Time Attendee Faces Emotional Challenges
For Indiana father Greg Wallace, attending his first CrimeCon is both exhausting and inspiring. His 23-year-old daughter vanished nearly eight years ago. On the convention's first full day, he appeared shell-shocked.
"I struggle with PTSD since she went missing, and just the bigger crowds and all the noise... it's really pushed me to my limits,"he said, wearing a shirt featuring his daughter Brittany's portrait surrounded by a heart of sunflowers.
"But I'm really glad I did it, because, you know, I've got her name out there globally now, and that just gives me more hope."
Celebrity Status and Family Dynamics at CrimeCon
CrimeCon features notable personalities, and a hierarchy extends to victim families. Zingman has experienced this firsthand.
At her second CrimeCon in Nashville, she felt discomfort as attendees passed her by in favor of families of more widely known victims.
"I'd see them mouth, 'Who is that?'"Zingman recalled.
"And I was like: I don't know if I can handle this, because it is very commercial."
Since then, she has learned not to take it personally and appreciates the platform the event provides for her daughter's story. She also values CrimeCon's evolution toward focusing more on victims and their families.
Kristi and Steve Goncalves, attending their first CrimeCon, fall into the "celebrity" category. Attendees often deliberate on what to say during scheduled meet-and-greets.
The couple has been "flooded with love" and is considering returning next year with a booth for their Murder Has a Name foundation, established in honor of their daughter to fund DNA testing.
"You can't beat the people that are here,"Kristi said.
"The media people that are here, the citizens that are here, the true crime families."
Perspectives on CrimeCon's Reputation and Purpose
Nicole Earnest-Payte, a sexual-assault survivor and speaker attending for the first time, believes CrimeCon is often misunderstood due to its name's similarity to Comic Con, the popular sci-fi and superhero event.
"They think, 'Oh, this is just a bunch of people that are obsessed with murder that come there,'"said the 56-year-old Californian, who waited 27 years for justice after being attacked by the NorCal rapist.
"And I don't think that's what this is."
She views CrimeCon as a place where attendees can learn about human behavior, the complexity of individuals, and crime investigation processes.
"That's really the key to making sure this doesn't veer into something gross,"she said.
"It's really important for fans to understand that these are real human beings, real lives, real parents, real children, real spouses whose lives have been completely destroyed."
