A 17-year-old Massachusetts teenager has been charged with murdering his mother and younger brother after allegedly consulting ChatGPT for ideas about killing his family.
Investigators found that Arjun had recently shown troubling behavior, including using the internet and ChatGPT to research what officials described as theoretical ideas or fantasies about killing his family.
The victims were identified as Aravind's 14-year-old brother, Siddharth Aravind, and his 45-year-old mother, Sudha Venkatesan. Both were found dead inside the family's home on Martha Lane on Aug. 11.
The investigation began shortly after 6:37 p.m. on Aug. 11, when Acton Police received a call from Arjun's father, who said he could not reach his family and that a tutor scheduled to visit the home had also been unable to contact them. The father told police his last contact with his wife had come early that morning before he left for work, while his younger son had last been seen around noon.
When officers arrived at the home, they found the pair dead—Siddharth on the first floor and Venkatesan in the finished basement. Investigators determined that Arjun was not there and had allegedly fled in his mother's 2014 green Honda Accord.
Early on Aug. 12, police in the neighboring town of Wayland responding to an unrelated alarm call in a parking lot on Andrew Avenue found the suspect vehicle with Arjun inside. He was taken into custody without incident.
A later update issued that morning by Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and Acton Chief Police Douglas Sturniolo confirmed Arjun had been located and that there was no ongoing risk to public safety.
While both victims showed signs of trauma, the exact cause and manner of death are pending further examination by the Chief Medical Examiner. The specific weapon or weapons used in the attack also remain under active investigation.
Arjun was scheduled to be arraigned on murder and related charges Thursday morning. A spokesperson for the district attorney’s office did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment from NTD News Thursday afternoon.