JONBENÉT RAMSEY: A Ransom Note, A Missing Girl & A Deadly Christmas

Christmas Day. A beautiful family home. Presents under the tree. And a six-year-old beauty queen who has no idea that this will be her final Christmas.

In December 1996, JonBenét Ramsey was murdered inside her family home in Boulder, Colorado. By the following morning, her mother had discovered a bizarre ransom note claiming that JonBenét had been kidnapped — and the police were called.

But there was a problem.

JonBenét was never taken from the house.

Her body would be discovered hours later in the basement.

In Part 1 of our four-part JonBenét Ramsey deep dive, Nikki and Cheryl take you back to Christmas 1996 and examine the night JonBenét was murdered, the shocking ransom note, the 911 call, the discovery of her body and the chaotic first hours of the police investigation.

How did a kidnapping turn into a murder inside the Ramsey family home? Why was there a ransom note demanding $118,000? And how did the initial investigation become so complicated so quickly?

And perhaps most importantly… was JonBenét really ever taken from the house at all?

This is one of the most infamous and controversial unsolved murder cases in true crime history — and we're going right back to the beginning.

⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: This episode discusses the murder of a child, injury detail and potential sexual abuse injuries. Please proceed with caution.

This is Part 1 of 4 in our JonBenét Ramsey series. Make sure you subscribe so you don't miss Parts 2, 3 and 4, where we dig deeper into the Ramsey family, the forensic evidence, the police investigation, the suspects and where the case stands today.

Watch the full video episode on YouTube and join the conversation in the comments with your theories.