Happy Face serial killer nearly confessed brutal murders to teen daughter: Youll tell the authorities

Melissa G.Moore was having breakfast with her father, Keith Jesperson, at a diner when he almost exposed his secret double life.The high school student, who was gearing up to get her driver’s license, was gushing about getting her freedom.

She was also excited to spend time with her father, a trucker who, at that point, was divorced from Moore’s mother.“I was on the verge of turning 16,” Moore recalled to Fox News Digital.“He made an unannounced visit and asked my siblings and me if we wanted to go have breakfast with him before school started.

My siblings had other commitments, so they couldn’t join us.… We talked about what would be my first car.

I remember he said he would buy me a Pontiac, and I debated with him.“Then the topic started to turn to the next time I would see him,” Moore shared.“He was looking forward to seeing us during the summer break.

But the way he spoke, it sounded like it was wishful thinking.… Then he started to say, ‘I need to tell you something, but you’ll tell the authorities.’ It stopped me.“At first, I thought, ‘It must be the rumors my mother had told me about, that he had been fired for stealing from his employer.’ Did he steal? I kept pressing it, saying, ‘You could tell me.’ He’s like, ‘No, no, I can’t tell you.’ I started to feel sick to my stomach.

I went to the bathroom, and when I returned, our food was there.He was ready to change the subject.“Looking back on that conversation, I feel he knew that his crimes were catching up to him.”Moore was 15 when Jesperson, a prolific serial killer infamous for drawing smiley faces in letters to the media and prosecutors, was captured.

The case is now the subject of a Paramount+ true-crime drama, “Happy Face,” starring Annaleigh Ashford and Dennis Quaid.Moore previously shared her story in the bestselling memoir, “Shattered Silence” and the 2018 “Happy Face” podcast. “I’m proud of this series because I think the fami...