news Alerts
There are no new alerts at this time
A Massachusetts teenager used a laptop and a knife to beat his mother and brother to death, hours after he used ChatGPT to search \u201cfor theoretical ideas or fantasy stories regarding the killing of his family,\u201d prosecutors said Thursday.
Arjun Aravind, 17, of the affluent Boston suburb of Acton, was charged with two counts of murder in the deaths of Sudha Venkatesan, 45, and Siddharth Aravind, 14, according to a criminal complaint filed in Concord.
He also faces assault and battery charges, accused of using \u201ca dangerous weapon, a Laptop,\u201d to attack his two victims, the complaint says.
Investigators said that \u201ca heavily damaged bloody laptop computer was found consistent with it being used during the assault,\u201d according to the complaint. Police also recovered what appeared to be a knife that was used in the attack: \u201cA bent utensil, possibly a knife with an orange handle, was also found in the area of the disturbance,\u201d the complaint said.
Aravind had been having \u201cbehavioral issues\u201d with \u201cconcerning internet activities\u201d \u2014 to the point that \u201cthe family was hiding knives in the household\u201d to prevent his \u201chaving access to them,\u201d according to the complaint.
Acton police officers arrived at the family home on Martha Lane at 6:37 p.m. Tuesday to conduct a welfare check. Aravind\u2019s tutor, who had a 4 p.m. appointment at the home that day, \u201cwas unable to make contact with residents upon arrival,\u201d prosecutors said. Shortly afterward, Aravind\u2019s father \u2014 who had left for work hours earlier \u2014 called police. Officers \u201cfound both victims dead inside,\u201d the district attorney said.
Siddharth\u2019s body was found on the first floor; Venkatesan\u2019s was found in the basement. The younger victim was found \u201cwith massive trauma to the head\u201d and \u201clying in a pool of blood,\u201d the complaint said. Venkatesan was found with \u201cheavy trauma\u201d to her head and face, along with \u201ca puncture rod to her stomach consistent with some object being used as a weapon,\u201d according to the document. \u201cAs officers cleared the residence, significant biological evidence was observed in and around the bodies,\u201d the probable cause statement said.
Hours before the killings, Aravind had typed into ChatGPT, \u201cwait when Adrian kills parents I could see him luring one to convo in basement as they have always forced him to do but what excuse would he use to take their phone\u201d and \u201cmaybe before killing mom Adrian coldly reveals,\u201d according to the complaint.
\u201cThe investigation has so far shown that Arjun had recently been demonstrating some concerning behavior, including using the internet and ChatGPT to make searches for theoretical ideas or fantasy stories regarding the killing of his family,\u201d Middlesex County DA Marian Ryan told reporters Wednesday.
A representative for OpenAI, the San Francisco-based developer of ChatGPT, could not immediately be reached for comment Thursday.
\u201cHe was engaged in the use of ChatGPT in creating fantasy stories, kind of the gothic novel kind of stories, asking questions, creating characters, asking what about this if this happened to that, and they seem to appear to relate to threats to his family,\u201d Ryan added.
It\u2019s unclear which victim was killed first. The suspect\u2019s brother had gone to a recreational facility around 9 a.m. and returned home shortly after noon, Ryan said.
\u201cThis is an unspeakable tragedy,\u201d Ryan said. \u201cIt is an incredibly dark day. Obviously, an insurmountable tragedy for the dad in this case.\u201d
Aravind and his mother\u2019s car \u2014 a 2014 green Honda Accord \u2014 were missing from the home when the bodies were discovered. An alarm was tripped at a parking lot about 13 miles away in Wayland early Wednesday. Officers \u201crecognized that license plate, and Arjun was inside that car,\u201d Ryan said. \u201cHe was taken into custody by police without incident,\u201d she added.
Aravind was found asleep in the vehicle; officers found bedding and \u201clarge amounts of cereal and protein energy bars,\u201d according to the complaint. A person, whose name was redacted from the court document, had been to a nearby supermarket at about 4 p.m. Tuesday and purchased \u201can enormous\u201d amount of cereal and energy bars.
\u201cThis employee reported this purchased was in excess of $2,000 and when questioned, he reported he had plans to sell the items,\u201d according to the complaint.
Local law enforcement had previous contact with the family after Aravind was reported missing the previous year. Acton Police Chief Douglas Sturniolo said that incident was treated as a runaway case and involved no threats of violence.
Defense lawyer Debra DeWit urged the public to reserve judgment.
\u201cMy client is distraught and confused,\u201d she told NBC News on Thursday. \u201cIt\u2019s a tragedy for everyone.\u201d
Aravind pleaded not guilty Thursday and was ordered held without bail.
Senior Breaking News Reporter
© 2026 NBCUniversal Media, LLC<\/p>\n