A Utah teenager was rescued from an Oregon man’s home after she successfully contacted help from another child in Among Us.
Authorities saved the 17-year-old November 1, 2026, after receiving a tip relayed by a younger player she met while playing developer Innersloth’s hit party mystery game, according to Newsweek. She had allegedly spent more than 500 days held captive by 39-year-old Adam Harmel after he took her across state lines and prevented her from leaving.
The Utah teen was just 15 when she was reported missing in May 2025. Harmel allegedly began contacting her through Snapchat earlier that month before offering to send her money to travel to his home in Oregon. He then made the hours-long drive to her location and lured her into his vehicle, disposing of her phone by throwing it into a river shortly after.
Investigators said Harmel forced the teenager to sleep in a bed with him in his basement, becoming increasingly violent through the 521 days she was held captive. She found her window to escape when the alleged kidnapper granted her access to a phone without cellular data.
Although unable to contact others via traditional means, the device did allow her to use a WiFi connection to play online games. Among Us, which allows players to communicate and was released for mobile devices in 2018, allowed her to get in touch with another child.
After moving the conversation to a different, undisclosed social media app, she then told the other player who she was, revealing that she was actively being held captive at Harmel’s home in Oregon.
She shared concern that, after more than 500 days of searching, authorities had stopped looking for her. The other child then alerted their mother to the interaction, with the parent then reaching out to the FBI. A subsequent video call with the missing teenager saw her describe her circumstances to investigators.
She was rescued from Harmel’s property later that day. Harmel has since been arrested and charged with transporting the teenager across state lines with the intent to exploit her.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).