Background: Courtroom video of Nikita Casap during his March 27, 2025, appearance (Waukesha County Circuit Court). Inset: Tatiana Casap and Donald Mayer (provided by family).
A Wisconsin teenager accused of murdering his mother and stepfather while planning to overthrow the government is set to plead guilty.
Nikita Casap, 18, was charged with two counts of intentional homicide and several other crimes in connection with the fatal shooting of his mother, 35-year-old Tatiana Casap, and stepfather, 51-year-old Donald Mayer, in March 2025. Online court records indicated that Nikita Casap was preparing to plead guilty to the two homicide charges during a hearing scheduled for Jan. 8. The remaining seven counts, including theft and hiding a corpse, are expected to be dismissed, according to court documents from Waukesha County District Attorney Leslie Boese that were obtained by local ABC affiliate WISN.
As Law&Crime previously reported, Nikita Casap allegedly shot his mother and stepfather in their home in Waukesha on or about Feb. 11, 2025. He then allegedly stole the family car and fled the state. He was arrested in Kansas on Feb. 28, 2025.
WATCH on Law&Crime Network: “Student of the Month’ Charged in Parents’ Horrifying Murder
Police were asked to conduct a welfare check at the home when the teenager failed to show up to school for two weeks. When they arrived at the home, they smelled the “odor of decay,” according to a criminal complaint reviewed by Law&Crime. The bodies of Mayer and Tatiana Casap were decomposing and covered in blankets. Tatiana Casap was still wearing her winter coat.
While on the run, Nikita Casap allegedly used Mayer’s phone to pose as his stepfather and send text messages to make it appear that Mayer was still alive. However, family members and those who knew Mayer described the messages as “weird” and uncharacteristic of Mayer.
According to the complaint, video surveillance showed that Nikita Casap stayed at the home with the bodies for several days before he left. The teen reportedly lit candles around the bodies and was picked up on audio saying, “So you can see him there. I can literally see the f—ing rotten body there.” Nikita Casap also took photos of the dead bodies with his own phone.
As authorities investigated the teen’s communications and movements, they uncovered a purported plan to “overthrow the government of the United States and assassinate President Trump.” Among their findings was a manifesto entitled “Accelerate the Collapse,” which outlined “a political revolution in the United States” to “save the white race” from “Jewish controlled” politicians. Nikita Casap was reportedly communicating on Telegram with a Russian national as part of his plot.
Authorities suspected that Nikita Casap killed his mother and stepfather so he could obtain the funds to carry out his plot.
Nikita Casap was charged with two counts each of intentional homicide, hiding a corpse, and misappropriating ID information to obtain money; two theft charges and taking and driving a vehicle without consent; and intimidating a witness. If his plea deal is accepted by Judge Ralph Ramirez, the latter seven charges will be dismissed. Nikita Casap faces a sentence of life without the possibility of extended supervision.
