In February, Wisconsin police performed a welfare check after 17-year-old Nikita Casap, who typically had perfect attendance, missed weeks of school. The teen was missing, but police found the dead bodies of his mother Tatiana Casap and his stepfather Donald Mayer in the home. Both bodies had gunshot wounds. Mayer had been shot in the head.
Police found Nikita Casap hundreds of miles away from home, with the family dog, in Mayer’s car. At the time, police could only charge the teen in relation to stealing the car. Now, more terrifying details about their deaths and his role have come out.
Nikita Casap appeared in a Waukesha court on Thursday, March 28, WTMJ reported. District Attorney Lesli Boese said that the teen shot his mother on February 11, 2025. He reportedly shot her at least three times: twice in the stomach and once in the neck. She was found in a hallway covered in blankets and towel. Mayer’s body was in an office on the first floor of the home, covered in a pile of clothing. He was killed by a gunshot to the back of the head.
The teen went to school the day after he shot Mayer. He then allegedly lived in the family’s home for nearly two weeks with the bodies before he took off on February 23. Court records show Waukesha Police saying they found a camera memory card. On the card was video showing Nikita Casap lighting candles in the office where Mayer’s body was.
Another video showed him sitting and recording the body about a week after the alleged murder.
Police also said that Nikita Casap stood next to his stepfather’s body with his phone out. It appeared that he was going to take photos all while recording himself. “So you can see him there. I can literally see the f—ing rotting body,” the teen said.
“The defendant continued to live at the residence with the two bodies at the house. He then fled with the $14,000 in cash,” Boese said. “We know he was communicating with someone to get fake plates put on the car to hide the car was stolen.”
Boese also said that Nikita Casap, who is from Moldovia, was communicating with someone who was Russian or Romanian. Much of his family is overseas.
“It appears this individual was trying to flee the jurisdiction — not only this state but this country,” Waukesha County court commissioner Christopher Bailey said. “A lot of these issues make the court believe that this individual had no intention to be here where he is today.”
The Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department released a statement sharing a list of updated charges against Nikita Casap. He has been charged with two counts of first-degree intentional homicide, two counts of hiding a corpse, theft of property over $10,000 and two counts of misappropriating ID to obtain money. This is in addition to the charges of operating a motor vehicle without the owner’s consent, and two counts of identity theft–financial gain that came after he allegedly stole Mayer’s car.
A preliminary hearing has been set for April 9.
