Two 12-year-old girls, pretending to play hide-and-seek, lured their friend into the woods of Waukesha, Wisconsin, and stabbed her 19 times in a plot to appease a fictional internet character known as Slender Man. The victim, Payton Leutner, miraculously survived. The suspects, Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weier, were arrested hours later, carrying a bloody knife.
Their motive: to become proxies for Slender Man, a faceless creature they believed was real and would 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁 their families if they didn’t prove their loyalty.
Now, more than a decade later, the case has taken yet another startling turn. In November 2025, Morgan Geyser, now 23, fled her court-ordered group home, cut off her GPS ankle monitor, and vanished. She was found days later at a truck stop in Illinois, crying and apologizing as police handcuffed her.
Her conditional release has been revoked, and she is back inside the Winnebago Mental Health Institute, where she will remain indefinitely.
The horror of May 31, 2014, still haunts the small community of Waukesha. Payton Leutner, then 12, believed she was playing a game with her two best friends. Instead, Morgan Geyser pinned her down while Anissa Weier urged, “Go berserk.”
Morgan stabbed Payton repeatedly, hitting her arms, legs, and torso. Afterward, they left her bleeding in the leaves and walked away, believing they had killed her.
A passing bicyclist found Payton crawling out of the woods, barely breathing. She was rushed to the hospital, where doctors counted 19 stab wounds, some piercing major organs. Against all odds, she survived.
When police interrogated Morgan and Anissa, they spoke calmly about their months-long plot. “We were trying to 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁 her,” Morgan told detectives. They said they learned about Slender Man on a website called Creepypasta Wiki, a collection of horror stories.
The case drew international attention. Experts testified that both girls suffered from delusional disorders, sharing a belief that Slender Man was real and would 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁 their families if they did not obey. In 2017, Anissa Weier pleaded guilty but was found not criminally responsible due to mental disease.
She was committed to a state mental health facility for 25 years. In 2021, she was conditionally released to live with her father, under strict monitoring until 2037.
Morgan Geyser, who did the actual stabbing, also pleaded guilty. In 2018, a judge committed her to Winnebago for 40 years, calling her a significant risk. But in January 2025, after years of treatment and positive evaluations, a judge granted her conditional release.
She moved to a group home, required to wear a GPS ankle monitor. The judge warned of the risks but said she had shown remarkable progress.
That progress unraveled within months. On November 2, 2025, staff at the group home noticed Morgan was missing. Her GPS monitor had been cut off.
A frantic call to police reported that a much older friend had been visiting her, raising concerns. Body camera footage shows police tracking Morgan to a truck stop in Posen, Illinois, with a companion named Stephanie Reese.
In the footage, Morgan initially lies about her age, claiming to be 23. When pressed, she finally gives her real name. “I did something bad.
Let me say goodbye,” she tells the officer, crying uncontrollably. “I’m sorry. So sorry, God.”
She was arrested without incident and later ordered back to Winnebago. Her attorney said Morgan had been overwhelmed by her first taste of freedom and made a “terrible mistake.”
The victim, Payton Leutner, has tried to move on. In a 2019 interview, she said she would thank Morgan for the attack because it shaped her into a stronger person. She sleeps with her windows locked and scissors under her pillow.
She has said she wants to become a doctor, inspired by the medical team that saved her life. But the trauma never fully fades. News of Morgan’s flight surely reignited old fears.
Anissa Weier, now 24, remains on conditional release, living with her father. She has not been involved in any known violations. Her commitment allows for continued monitoring, including GPS tracking and mental health treatment.
She has expressed deep regret and said she is committed to staying medication-compliant and avoiding any trigger that might reignite delusions.
The Slender Man stabbings remain a chilling example of how internet folklore can warp young minds. The character originated in a 2009 online photo manipulation contest and later spawned a vast mythology. Experts say it is harmless for most children, but for vulnerable, isolated kids with emerging mental illness, it can become an all-consuming fixation.
The case forced parents worldwide to reconsider how they monitor their children’s online activity.
Waukesha Police Chief Russell Jack issued a stark warning during the initial investigation. “The internet is full of dark and wicked things. Unmonitored access by children is a growing problem.
This should be a wakeup call for parents.” That warning has not aged well. With social media and unregulated content, the risks have only multiplied.
Morgan Geyser’s latest return to the mental health institute marks another chapter in a saga that refuses to close. Her next chance for release will not come until at least six months from now, and she must prove she can abide by strict conditions. Meanwhile, Anissa Weier continues to rebuild her life out of the public eye.
And Payton Leutner remains a symbol of resilience, though her scars are both physical and invisible.
As of this writing, no new court dates have been set for Morgan Geyser. Prosecutors have declined to comment on whether they will seek to extend her commitment or file new charges for violating her conditional release. The case continues to stir debate about mental health, juvenile justice, and the responsibility of parents and internet platforms in protecting children from dangerous ideas.
The world watched two 12-year-old girls become killers in the name of a ghost. More than 11 years later, the aftermath proves that even when the fantasy ends, the real-world consequences are only beginning.