Slender Man stabbing: Accused Wisconsin girls to appear in court

The girls are accused of luring a friend into the woods and stabbing her 19 times to please the fictional character the Slender Man

Two 12-year-old girls who are accused of luring a friend into the woods and stabbing her 19 times to please Slender Man, the fictional internet character, are expected to appear in court on Wednesday for a scheduling hearing, Wisconsin prosecutors said.

The girls are due to appear in front of a court commissioner in Waukesha County Circuit Court where they have been charged as adults with first-degree attempted homicide, Deputy District Attorney Sue Opper said.

The defendants had developed a fascination with the ‘Slender Man’ character (also known as Slenderman), after encountering the name on the Creepypasta Wiki website.

They allegedly began plotting the murder in February in order to appease the mythical demon-like character, who features in various horror stories and memes as a lanky man with a featureless face.

Some stories gave him the ability to teleport or stretch to extreme heights. Others believed that he could read people's minds or cause memory loss. One of the girls told a detective she thought she would be able to go live with Slenderman if she killed someone, the criminal complaint said.

Anthony Cotton, one of the girl’s lawyers, said in a recent interview that moving the case to juvenile court would be "the responsible route to take".

The girls face up to 60 years in prison if convicted as adults of attempted homicide. They could be incarcerated to age 25 if they are convicted as juveniles under Wisconsin law.

Additional reporting by Reuters