Morgan Geyser, the Wisconsin woman who made headlines as a 12-year-old for stabbing a classmate to impress the fictional horror character Slender Man, has been recaptured after cutting off her ankle monitor and fleeing a group home.
Geyser, now 23, had been placed in a group home after her conditional release earlier this year from the Winnebago Mental Health Institute, where she had been institutionalized since 2018.
Police say she was last seen around 8PM on Saturday (November 22) with an adult acquaintance. Authorities launched a manhunt after discovering she had removed her Department of Corrections monitoring bracelet.
Her attorney, Tony Cotton, addressed the situation in a video posted to social media, urging her to come forward
“It’s in her best interest for her to turn herself in immediately and not continue with this course of action," Cotton said, adding: “We don’t know any of the facts about what happened or who might have assisted her," per The Guardian.
Morgan Geyser escaped from the group home. Credit: Waukesha Police Department
Police Reveal Geyser Was Recaptured
On Sunday, November 23, the Madison Police Department confirmed that Geyser had been located and arrested in the state of Illinois.
“On Nov. 23, at approximately 10:34 p.m., the MPD received confirmation that Morgan Geyser was taken into custody in the state of Illinois,” the authorities said in the release. “There is no longer a need to search for Morgan Geyser at this time.”
The infamous attack shocked the nation
Geyser and her friend Anissa Weier were both just 12 years old in 2014 when they lured their classmate, Payton Leutner, into a wooded park in Waukesha, Wisconsin.
Geyser stabbed Leutner 19 times while Weier encouraged the attack. Miraculously, Leutner survived the horrific ordeal after crawling to a nearby path where a passing cyclist found her.
The motives behind the attack were as perplexing as they were terrifying; Geyser and Weier claimed they were driven by a desire to appease the fictional entity known as Slender Man, an internet-born boogeyman whose lore had captured their imaginations.
Geyser later pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree intentional homicide in a deal that spared her prison time and sent her to a mental institution. She was 15 when sentenced.
Weier also pleaded guilty to attempted second-degree intentional homicide. She was also sent to the psychiatric center and granted release in 2021.
Anissa Weier. Credit: Waukesha Police Dept.
Where is the Leutner now?
Leutner spent 10 days in the hospital following the stabbing and endured an intense recovery that included up to eight medical appointments a week.
She returned to Horning Middle School that September to begin seventh grade. According to a family representative, she quickly re-engaged with school life, excelling academically, participating in music programs, and volunteering at an animal shelter, just as she had before the attack by Weier and Geyser.
To cope with the emotional trauma, Leutner and her family each sought counseling.
In October 2019, she broke her silence in a powerful 20/20 interview with David Muir, where she admitted to still sleeping with broken scissors under her pillow five years after the attack. Despite everything, Leutner said she found something positive in the experience.
"Just because of what she did, I have the life I have now," she said. "I really, really like it and I have a plan. I didn't have a plan when I was 12, and now, I do because of everything that I went through.
"I wouldn't think that someone who went through what I did would ever say that, but that’s truly how I feel. Without the whole situation, I wouldn't be who I am."