Waukesha County teen charged with homicide after mother, stepfather found dead in home
WAUKESHA COUNTY, Wis. (CBS 58) -- The Waukesha County teen whose mother and stepfather were found dead inside their home following a welfare check in February has now been charged with homicide.
Prosecutors say 17-year-old Nikita Casap shot and killed his mom and stepfather and continued living in the same home with their bodies for two weeks.
“First degree intentional homicide – the highest, the highest counts that we have, quite frankly, in our country,” said Judge Ralph Ramierz in court.
Waukesha County prosecutors filed two counts of first-degree intentional homicide against the 17-year-old for the deaths of his mom, Tatiana Casap and stepfather, Donald Mayer. Casap is also facing additional felony charges including hiding a corpse, and identity theft.
Court documents say the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Office was called to Casap’s home on Cider Hills drive on Feb. 28th for a wellness check after Casap’s grandmother said she hadn’t heard from Mayer in two weeks. Investigators say Casap’s school also confirmed he hadn’t attended classes for over two weeks.
During the wellness check, deputies found bodies of both Mayer and Tatiana Casap covered by blankets and pillows. Investigators say the bodies had decomposed to the point they could not make a visual ID. Casap was arrested in Kansas after leaving the state and traveling through Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming and Colorado. He was arrested during a traffic stop in Kansas and later charged with stealing his stepfather's car and a handgun, along with credit cards, jewelry, and surveillance video.
“They’re indicating they’ve got video evidence; they’ve got communication, they’ve got transactions. They’ve got a litany of things,” said Judge Ramierz.
Casap was transported back to Wisconsin and according to court records, is now facing additional charges including two counts first degree intentional homicide, two counts hiding a corpse, and two counts misappropriating ID info to obtain money.
In the surveillance video, investigators say Casap can be seen lighting candles near Mayer’s body and saying “So you can see him there. I can literally see the ******* rotten body there.”
Officers also found messages on Casap’s cell phone to a Russian individual about plans to escape to Ukraine.
“He has been speaking with someone in Russian about moving to Ukraine after committing these crimes, so the state is concerned that he is a flight risk if he is ever released,” said prosecutors.
In court, Casap's bail was set to $1 million.