Key facts
- Name: Adam Joseph Herrman (born Irvin Groeninger III)
- Born: June 8, 1987
- Age at disappearance: 11
- Last seen: May 1999
- Location: Pine Ridge Mobile Home Park, Towanda, Kansas
- Height / build: 11-year-old boy
- Status: Still missing — disappearance not reported until 2008
- Investigating agency: Butler County Sheriff’s Office
The boy nobody reported missing
In May 1999, eleven-year-old Adam Herrman disappeared from the Pine Ridge Mobile Home Park in Towanda, Kansas.
Nobody told the police. Not that month. Not that year. Not for nine years.
It wasn’t until 2008 that Adam’s disappearance was finally reported to authorities — by which time the trail was nearly a decade cold, the mobile home park had turned over, memories had faded, and an 11-year-old boy had been gone so long that most of the world never knew he’d existed.
How does a child vanish for nine years before anyone calls for help? To answer that, you have to go back to the beginning of Adam’s short, hard life.
Who Adam was
He was born Irvin Groeninger III on June 8, 1987. He entered the foster system young and came under the care of Doug and Valerie Herrman — though in 1990 or 1991, the Herrmans lost the foster license that allowed them to care for him.
The paper trail that followed reads like a system watching a child slip away in slow motion. In November 1996, the Herrmans’ home on North Westview Drive in Derby, Kansas, was investigated after a report of suspected abuse; the state found the report couldn’t be substantiated. In January 1998, Adam’s school filed another abuse report; investigators found no crime had taken place. Later that month, Adam reportedly ran away from home — and came back. The next month, he was withdrawn from public school. The family moved to the Pine Ridge Mobile Home Park in Towanda, where his parents said they’d homeschool him.
Then, in May 1999: gone. And for nine years, silence.
The investigation
When the case finally reached the Butler County Sheriff’s Office in 2008, investigators did what they could with a nine-year-old void. They searched numerous properties. They conducted at least one dig. They chased the few leads that hadn’t rotted with time.
The case remains unsolved. No one has ever been charged in connection with Adam’s disappearance. His body has never been found.
Adam’s story is, in some ways, the inverse of the famous cases — the ones with milk cartons and podcasts and national news. His is the story of the children the system is supposed to catch: the foster child, the withdrawn-from-school child, the child whose absence took nine years to notice. Whatever happened to Adam Herrman in May 1999 happened to a boy who had already been failed several times over.
Theories: what might have happened
Honesty requires saying this plainly: with a nine-year reporting delay, the evidentiary record is almost nonexistent, and theory here is mostly structured grief.
Foul play at home. The history of abuse reports — two in two years, both unsubstantiated — hangs over the case. An 11-year-old doesn’t simply walk away from a mobile home park and stay gone for 27 years without help or harm. But “unsubstantiated” means what it says, and no charges have ever been filed against anyone. The presumption of innocence applies to the living.
Runaway. Adam had run away once before, in January 1998, and returned. An 11-year-old running away again is plausible; an 11-year-old surviving alone, undetected, into adulthood without a single confirmed trace is not.
Have information?
Contact the Butler County Sheriff’s Office or the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST). In an emergency, dial 911.
Timeline
- June 8, 1987 — Irvin Groeninger III is born.
- 1990–1991 — Foster caregivers Doug and Valerie Herrman lose their foster license.
- November 1996 — Abuse report at the Derby home; unsubstantiated.
- January 1998 — School files abuse report; no crime found. Adam runs away briefly, returns.
- February 1998 — Withdrawn from public school; family moves to Towanda.
- May 1999 — Adam disappears from Pine Ridge Mobile Home Park. No report is made.
- 2008 — Disappearance finally reported; Butler County investigates, searches properties, conducts a dig.
- Today — Still missing.
FAQ
Is Adam Herrman still missing?
Yes. As of October 2026, Adam Herrman has been missing for 27 years. The case remains unsolved.
Was Adam Herrman ever found?
No. No remains have been identified as Adam’s, and no one has ever been charged in his disappearance.
How old would Adam Herrman be today?
Adam was born June 8, 1987 — he turned 39 in June 2026.
Why did it take nine years to report Adam Herrman missing?
That is one of the case’s central unanswered questions. His disappearance in May 1999 was not reported to authorities until 2008. The reasons for the delay have never been fully explained publicly.
How can I help?
Share this case file. Contact the Butler County Sheriff’s Office or NCMEC at 1-800-843-5678 with any information.
Sources
- Official / law enforcement: Butler County Sheriff’s Office (searches and dig in the case).
- Reference: Wikipedia, “Disappearance of Adam Herrman” (retrieved Oct 2026); The Charley Project.
Found an error? Tell us via the About page and we will fix it promptly and note the change here. Last verified October 2026.