Isabelle Valdez, 15, and Lois Lippert, 14, Arrested For Attempted Murder

A True Crime Story of Internet Myth, Delusion, and Attempted Murder from Altamont Springs, FL

By SyndicatedNews Legal Eagle | SNN.BZ

In May 2014, a quiet suburb in the American Midwest became the center of one of the most disturbing true-crime cases of the decade. The attack, later widely known as the Slender Man stabbing, involved two 12-year-old girls who attempted to murder their friend in order to prove their loyalty to the fictional internet character Slender Man.

What unfolded was a chilling intersection of childhood friendship, online horror mythology, and severe mental illness.

The Night of the Attack

On May 31, 2014, in Waukesha, three sixth-grade girls gathered for a birthday sleepover. The girls—Morgan Geyser, Anissa Weier, and their friend Payton Leutner—had been classmates and companions.

But Geyser and Weier had secretly been planning something horrifying for months.

After the sleepover, the girls walked to a wooded park area. Under the pretense of playing hide-and-seek, Geyser and Weier led Leutner deep into the woods. Suddenly, the attack began.

Geyser pulled out a knife and stabbed Leutner 19 times, striking vital areas including the chest, diaphragm, stomach, and liver. The wounds were so severe that one missed a major artery by only a millimeter. The attackers left their friend in the forest believing she would die. But in an extraordinary act of survival, Leutner crawled out of the woods to a nearby road where a passing cyclist found her and called for help. She survived after emergency treatment and several days in the hospital.

The Motivation: “Slender Man”

When police arrested the girls hours later, investigators were shocked by their explanation. They said they committed the stabbing to appease Slender Man and prove their loyalty to him. They believed that:

Slender Man was real
He watched them constantly
He could harm their families if they did not obey him
Killing their friend would allow them to become his “proxies” or servants

The character Slender Man originated in 2009 on internet forums as part of a horror photo contest. He is typically depicted as a tall, faceless figure in a black suit who stalks children in forests. Through online “creepypasta” horror stories, the myth spread widely among young internet users. Geyser and Weier reportedly spent months reading these stories and gradually became convinced the entity was real.

Evidence From Investigators

Court records and police interrogations revealed several key facts about the crime:

Months of planning

The girls began plotting the murder in 2013, months before the attack.

Multiple abandoned plans

Earlier ideas included killing Leutner in her sleep or in a bathroom during the sleepover.

The “hide-and-seek” plan

Ultimately they chose the park and the hide-and-seek ruse to isolate the victim.

Mental health symptoms

During evaluations, Geyser described seeing fictional characters and believing supernatural forces communicated with her.

Investigators later determined that Geyser suffered from early-onset schizophrenia, which contributed to her delusional belief in Slender Man.

The Legal Battle

Because the crime was so serious, both girls were charged as adults with attempted homicide, even though they were only 12 years old.

The case sparked intense national debate over:

juvenile justice
mental illness in children
the influence of internet culture

Court Outcomes

Morgan Geyser
- Pleaded guilty but was found not criminally responsible due to mental illness
- Committed to a psychiatric institution for up to 40 years
Anissa Weier
- Pleaded guilty to a lesser charge
- Sentenced to up to 25 years in a mental hospital

Weier was granted supervised release in 2021, while Geyser remained institutionalized for years before conditional release was considered.

Developments a Decade Later

More than ten years after the attack, the case continues to generate headlines.

Geyser was conditionally released to a monitored group home in 2025 after doctors testified she had improved.
Later that year, she cut off her GPS bracelet and briefly fled, triggering a manhunt before she was captured.

The victim, Payton Leutner, has since recovered and rebuilt her life, though she carries physical scars from the attack.

Why the Case Shocked the World

The Slender Man stabbing became one of the most disturbing crimes involving children in modern American history. It raised difficult questions:

Can fictional online stories influence real-world violence?
How should the justice system treat severely mentally ill juveniles?
What responsibility do internet communities have when myths and horror narratives spread among children?

For many investigators and psychologists, the case ultimately highlighted the dangers of untreated mental illness combined with intense immersion in online fantasy worlds.

A Disturbing Echo in Florida

More than a decade after the infamous Slender Man Stabbing, another chilling case emerged in Altamonte Springs, Florida—one that investigators say echoed the same dark themes of ritualistic violence, obsession, and notoriety.

The Lake Brantley High School Murder Plot

In January 2026, two teenage girls at Lake Brantley High School were arrested after police uncovered a detailed plan to murder a male classmate on campus. The suspects, Isabelle Valdez, 15, and Lois Lippert, 14, were charged with attempted first-degree premeditated murder after investigators discovered they had brought a knife to school and intended to ambush a fellow student in a bathroom. Police say the plan had been developing for months. According to arrest reports, Valdez had become obsessed with Adam Lanza, the gunman responsible for the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Investigators say she believed that killing a student who resembled the shooter and performing a ritual with the victim’s blood would allow her to communicate with him again.

Police documents describe a disturbing level of planning:

The girls allegedly stalked the intended victim since September, memorizing his schedule and secretly taking photos of him.
Valdez brought a knife, gloves, flowers, and cigarettes to school for the planned killing and its aftermath.
Investigators say the murder was supposed to occur in a school bathroom after class, where Valdez planned to stab the boy and perform a ritual involving his blood.

The victim reportedly did not even know the girls who targeted him. The attack never happened because another student overheard discussions about the plan and reported it through a tip system, giving administrators and police time to intervene. Authorities later called that student the “hero” who saved the boy’s life.

The Patrol Car Conversation

One of the most unsettling elements of the case came after the arrests. Police placed the two girls in the back of the same patrol car, where a recording device captured their conversation without them realizing it. Instead of fear or remorse, prosecutors say the teenagers joked about their situation. Investigators reported that the girls:

Discussed how they would look in their mugshots
Speculated about how many years they might spend in prison
Talked about spreading their story within the true-crime community

At one point, one of the suspects reportedly said she wanted to wear makeup for her mugshot but could not find any. Authorities say the recording is now key evidence in court as prosecutors argue the girls should remain jailed because they pose a continuing threat.

A Pattern of Dark Influence

To many observers, the Florida case felt eerily reminiscent of the Slender Man stabbing years earlier. Both incidents involved:

Teenage girls
Elaborate ritualistic motives
Online obsessions with violent figures
A belief that murder would serve a supernatural or symbolic purpose

Psychologists say such cases highlight the dangerous mix of untreated mental health issues, online subcultures, and adolescent vulnerability. In the Wisconsin case, a child nearly died after being stabbed 19 times. In Florida, a student survived because someone spoke up before the attack could happen.

A Warning From Investigators

Law enforcement officials in Seminole County say the lesson from the case is clear:

Threats among young people—especially when tied to online ideology or violent fantasies—must always be taken seriously. In this instance, a single anonymous tip prevented what could have become another nationally shocking tragedy. And in the quiet suburb of Altamonte Springs, a chilling reality emerged: More than ten years after the Slender Man attack shocked the world, the same kind of dark thinking had surfaced again—this time in Seminole County, Altamonte Springs, Florida in the mings of Isabelle Valdez 15 and Lois Lippert 14.