A childhood game of hide-and-seek in a Wisconsin park nearly turned into a murder scene when two 12-year-old girls allegedly stabbed their friend 19 times, leaving her for dead in the woods, all in a twisted plot to prove their loyalty to a fictional internet character known as Slender Man.
The chilling case that shocked the nation in May 2014 has resurfaced with new developments, as one of the perpetrators, Morgan Geyser, who was granted conditional release in January 2025, has now had that release revoked after she fled her group home and removed her GPS monitoring ankle bracelet.
The attack took place on May 31, 2014, in Waukesha, Wisconsin, when Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weier lured their 12-year-old friend, Payton Leutner, into the woods of David’s Park under the pretense of playing hide-and-seek. Once there, they turned on her in a brutal assault that nearly claimed her life.
A passing bicyclist discovered Payton crawling from the woods, covered in blood and struggling to breathe. She had been stabbed 19 times, with wounds penetrating major organs. Against staggering odds, she survived.
The 911 call captured the desperate scene. The bicyclist reported that a 12-year-old female had been stabbed multiple times and was having trouble breathing. Police were dispatched immediately, and Payton was rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment.
The investigation took a shocking turn when police located the two suspects five hours after the attack, walking near a furniture store along Interstate 94. They were carrying a bloody knife in a bag. Both girls were taken into custody and placed in separate interview rooms.
In their interrogations, the girls revealed a chilling motive. They had been planning the murder for months, driven by an obsession with the fictional character Slender Man, an internet horror legend depicted as a tall, faceless figure in a suit. They believed they had to kill someone close to them to become proxies for Slender Man and protect their families from his wrath.
Morgan Geyser admitted to detectives that she and Anissa Weier had discussed killing Payton since December of the previous year. She confessed that they tricked Payton into walking into the woods by saying they were going bird watching. When Payton lay down to play hide-and-seek, Anissa held her down while Morgan stabbed her repeatedly.
The last words Payton said to Morgan were haunting: I trusted you. Then she said, I hate you.
Anissa Weier revealed that she believed Slender Man would kill her family if they did not carry out the murder. She described him as a tall figure who could be anywhere from six to fourteen feet tall, wearing a suit with a red tie, with the ability to exploit tendrils from his back to strangle victims.
The case drew international attention and raised alarming questions about children’s exposure to dark internet content. Waukesha Police Chief Russell Jack issued a stark warning to parents, urging them to monitor their children’s internet activity closely.
The legal proceedings were complex. Both girls were charged as adults with attempted first-degree intentional homicide. In 2017, Anissa Weier pleaded guilty to attempted second-degree intentional homicide but was found not criminally responsible due to mental disease or defect.
She was committed to the Winnebago Mental Health Institute for up to 25 years.
Morgan Geyser accepted a plea deal and was committed for up to 40 years. Both girls had been diagnosed with mental health conditions, including delusional disorder, and experts testified that they genuinely believed Slender Man was real.
Payton Leutner, now an adult, has bravely moved forward with her life. She has stated in interviews that she would thank Morgan Geyser for the attack because it shaped who she became and inspired her to pursue a career in medicine. She continues to carry the physical scars of that day but refuses to hide them.
In January 2025, a judge granted Morgan Geyser conditional release, ruling that she no longer posed a significant risk after years of treatment. She was placed in a group home and required to wear a GPS monitoring bracelet. However, in November 2025, she fled the facility and removed her ankle monitor.
Body camera footage from police in Posen, Illinois, captured the moment officers encountered Morgan and an older friend at a truck stop. Morgan initially lied about her identity before eventually confessing. She was taken back into custody and her conditional release was revoked in December 2025.
As of this report, Morgan Geyser remains at the Winnebago Mental Health Institute. Anissa Weier continues to live with her father under conditional release. The case serves as a stark reminder of how fantasy can collide with reality with devastating consequences, and the ongoing struggle to balance mental health treatment with public safety.
