Morgan Geyser, the attacker who stabbed ‘Slender Man’, is arrested after fleeing a group home: police

Morgan Geyser, who in 2014 stabbed a friend 19 times to appease the fictional character “Slender Man,” was located Sunday night after she allegedly cut off her Department of Corrections monitoring bracelet and left a Wisconsin group home where she had been a resident, authorities said.

Geyser was arrested in Posen, Illinois, police confirmed to ABC News.

Before being located, Geyser was last seen in Madison around 8 p.m. Saturday with an adult acquaintance, police said in a statement posted to social media, which included a recent surveillance image of Geyser.

Geyser was found Sunday night at a Thornton’s truck stop with another person, according to Posen police, who said the couple took a bus to Posen and both were taken into custody.

Police later said the person traveling with Geyser was a 42-year-old man, charged with criminal trespassing and obstructing identification. He was released but remained at the police station, Posen police said. Authorities said they would not provide the man’s name, booking photo or details of his involvement.

“Geyser will be held pending transfer to Cook County for an extradition hearing at 26th and California,” the department said, referring to the criminal court administration building in Chicago. It was not immediately clear when that hearing would take place.

Posen is about 25 minutes south of Chicago.

the police department saying He was notified of the disappearance of Geyser, 22, on Sunday morning.

Geyser’s mother, Angie Geyser, said in a statement to ABC News on Sunday: “If you see Morgan, call the police. Morgan, if you can see this, we love you and just want to know you are safe.”

In March, the Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Michael Bohren ordered Geyser released from Winnebago Mental Health Institute and sent to a group home after three psychologists testified that she was ready for supervised release.

As part of his release, Geyser was ordered to wear a monitoring bracelet.

Geyser, according to police, cut off his Department of Corrections monitoring bracelet and left the group home sometime Saturday night.

Geyser’s attorney, Tony Cotton, issued a statement Sunday asking Geyser to turn herself in, saying doing so was “in her best interest.”

Geyser and another girl, Anissa Weier, were charged as adults and pleaded guilty to stabbing a classmate, Payton Leutner, 19 times in 2014, when they and the victim were 12 years old. Geyser and Weier’s guilty pleas were later vacated when they were found not guilty by reason of mental illness or defect. Both were later sent to psychiatric institutions.

“Payton Leutner and her family are aware of the latest situation regarding Morgan Geyser,” a spokesperson for the Leutner family said in a statement to ABC News. “Payton and her family are safe and are working closely with local authorities to ensure their continued safety.”

“The family wants to thank all of he law enforcement entities involved in efforts to apprehend Morgan,” the statement continued. “The Leutner family would also like to thank the outpouring of support from family, friends and supporters who have reached out to them during this difficult time.”

In January, Judge Bohren ordered the state Department of Health Services to develop a plan for Geyser’s supervised release.

Geyser was moved in March from the Winnebago mental health facility to a group home despite concerns raised by prosecutors, who alleged she had “violent” communication with a man outside the facility and had read a book at the facility with “themes of sexual sadism and murder.”

In 2014, Geyser and Weier lured his friend, Payton Leutner, then 12, into the woods in Waukesha, Wisconsin, where Geyser stabbed Leutner as Weier watched.

Geyser and Weier left Leutner alone in the forest. Wounded and bleeding, Leutner pulled herself to safety and was rushed to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.

Leutner survived the attack that captured headlines around the world after Geyser and Weier claimed the stabbing was intended to please “Slender Man,” a faceless Internet-based fictional character who gained a cult following.

Geyser pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree intentional homicide and was sent to the Winnebago Mental Health Institute in 2018. Geyser was later found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect and was sentenced to up to 40 years in a psychiatric institution.

Weier was also found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect after pleading guilty to a lesser charge. She was sentenced to up to 25 years in a psychiatric institution. In 2021, at the age of 19, Weier was granted supervised release.

In an interview with ABC’s “20/20” in October 2019, Leutner said he had worked hard to recover from the attack and rebuild a normal life. She told ABC News she was ready to reclaim her story.

“I’ve come to accept all the scars that I have,” Leutner said in the exclusive interview with ABC’s David Muir. “It’s just a part of me. I don’t think about them much. They’ll probably disappear and fade over time.”

ABC News Victory Arkansasold, jason Wolack, Jolloh Mariama and Ahmad Hemingway contributed to this report.