On a cold Saturday in January 2023, the small city of Dawson Creek, British Columbia, was shaken by a discovery that signaled the beginning of a dark and violent chapter for the community. The deaths of Adam Roy Isley and his partner, Tina Nellis, marked a turning point, leaving a legacy of fear and unanswered questions that continues to haunt the "Mile Zero" city. Adam, a 42-year-old man, was known by his middle name, Roy, to friends and family. He and Tina were part of the fabric of the tight-knit northern community.
On January 14, 2023, officers with the Dawson Creek detachment of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) were called to a residence in the 1200 block of 118th Avenue, located in the Mile Zero Trailer Park. Inside the home, they found the bodies of Adam Isley and 40-year-old Tina Nellis. Police quickly determined that both individuals had been victims of homicide.
The brutal double murder inside their own home sent a wave of shock and unease through Dawson Creek, a town of about 12,500 people.
The investigation into the slayings was launched by the BC RCMP, with officials urging anyone with information to come forward. "While no arrests have yet been made, police continue to gather evidence and progress the investigation forward," Superintendent Sanjaya Wijayakoon of the BC RCMP Major Crime Section stated. Despite this assurance, the case grew colder as the months passed without any publicly named suspects or arrests, deepening the community's anxiety. The double homicide was one of the first in a string of 11 unsolved killings that would plague the city starting in January 2023.
The case took a disturbing turn as investigative reporting began to uncover potential links to the local drug trade and another homicide. According to reporting by the CBC, Darylyn Supernant, a woman who was later found murdered herself, may have been a witness to the killings of Isley and Nellis. Her father told reporters that before she disappeared, Darylyn was afraid for her life because she had witnessed a double murder. Her stepsister also heard that Darylyn had been in the wrong place at the wrong time and "saw something" she wasn't supposed to see.
For outreach workers and residents, the murders of Adam and Tina were a grim catalyst. "I think things were really set off with the first murders of Tina and Roy," local outreach worker Jan Atkinson told journalists. "I think after that it really spiralled." The lack of resolution in their case, and the many others that followed, has left Dawson Creek gripped by rumor and fear. The town's homicide rate soared to 14 times the national average, fueled by what some locals describe as unorganized and chaotic violence connected to drugs.
As of late 2026, the murders of Adam Roy Isley and Tina Nellis remain unsolved. Their deaths are a central focus of CBC's "The Mile Zero Murders" podcast, which explores the wave of violence that has overwhelmed the small northern city. No arrests have been made, and the investigation remains an active, open homicide file with the Dawson Creek RCMP. Police continue to ask for the public's help, urging anyone with information, no matter how insignificant it may seem, to come forward. Individuals can contact the Dawson Creek RCMP or, to remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers.
