Adrian Mellon's Murder

During the Canal Days Festival, Adrian Mellon, a gay man, is harassed by three teenagers—John 'Webby' Garton, Steven Dubay, and Christopher Unwin—after winning a hat that says 'IDERRY.' The boys beat him and throw him off the Main Street Bridge into the Canal. Under the bridge, a clown with balloons—Pennywise—is waiting. Mellon is killed, and his body is found mutilated. The police investigation reveals that both Hagarty and Unwin claim to have seen a clown under the bridge, but the story is suppressed to secure convictions. The murder marks the beginning of a new cycle of violence in Derry.