POSEN, ILLINOIS — Morgan Geyser, 23, who was institutionalized for the notorious 2014 “Slender Man” stabbing, was taken back into custody on Sunday night at a truck stop near Chicago, roughly 24 hours after escaping a supervised group home in Madison, Wisconsin.
Geyser was found at a Thorntons truck stop in Posen, Illinois, alongside 43-year-old Chad “Charly” Mecca, a friend who later claimed responsibility for the escape. Police say the pair were discovered sleeping behind the building after officers responded to a loitering complaint. Geyser initially gave a false name but eventually told police to “just Google” her, saying she had “done something really bad.”
Escape, Capture, and a Delayed Response
Geyser had been granted conditional release in early 2025 after spending over a decade in a mental health facility for her role in the near-fatal stabbing of classmate Payton Leutner. On Saturday evening, she allegedly cut off her GPS ankle monitor and left the group home without authorization.
Authorities later confirmed that the Department of Corrections received an alert about the malfunctioning monitor on Saturday night but failed to notify Madison police until nearly 12 hours later, after group home staff called 911 on Sunday morning. By then, Geyser and Mecca had already traveled nearly 170 miles.
Police believe the two took a bus to Chicago and then walked around 20 miles south to Posen. According to Mecca, Geyser panicked after learning the group home planned to end their visitations. He said she sobbed and fled, and that he followed her because “she wasn’t going back to jail.” The pair had reportedly met at a church in Madison and may have been trying to reach Nashville, Tennessee.
Legal Consequences and Ongoing Review
Mecca was issued citations for trespassing and obstructing identification but was released shortly after. Geyser, meanwhile, is expected to face an extradition hearing in Cook County to be returned to Wisconsin, where the Department of Health Services will review whether her conditional release should be revoked.
Back in 2014, Geyser and co-defendant Anissa Weier lured Leutner into the woods in Waukesha, Wisconsin, and stabbed her 19 times in an attempt to appease the fictional internet character known as Slender Man. Leutner survived the attack. Geyser was later found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect and committed to institutional care.
For more cases involving mental health rulings, conditional releases, and high-profile escape incidents, check out our video here:
