A 17-year-old Massachusetts boy has been arrested and charged with murder in the deaths of his mother and younger brother, according to authorities. The Middlesex District Attorney's office stated that the teenager, identified as Arjun Aravind, allegedly used artificial intelligence to explore "fantasies" about killing his family.
Aravind faces two counts of murder, as well as charges of assault and battery on a family or household member, and motor vehicle offenses. He was taken into custody early Wednesday morning after the bodies of his mother, Sudha Venkatesan, 45, and his brother, Siddharth, 14, were discovered in their Acton home on Tuesday evening. Police were dispatched for a welfare check after the father, who was out of town, could not reach his family and a scheduled tutor was unable to gain entry to the home.
Responding officers found Siddharth deceased on the first floor and Venkatesan in the basement. Both victims exhibited "obvious trauma," according to the District Attorney's office, though the exact cause of death is pending the medical examiner's findings.
Investigators revealed that Aravind's online search history showed he had used ChatGPT to generate "theoretical ideas or fantasy stories regarding the killing of his family." The district attorney described the AI interactions as exploring "Gothic novels, creating characters asking what about this, what about that, which appear to relate to threats to his family not surviving."
Following the discovery of the bodies, Aravind was not found at the residence. Authorities determined he had left the scene in his mother's vehicle, a 2014 Honda Accord. A manhunt ensued, and the vehicle was located approximately 12 miles from the family home in Wayland early Wednesday. Police apprehended Aravind without incident after spotting the car in a parking lot.
Authorities believe the killings occurred at some point on Tuesday. Venkatesan was last seen by her husband around 7 a.m. when he left for work, and Siddharth returned home shortly after noon. The district attorney noted that the timeline of the deaths is still under investigation due to a "fairly large window."
Acton Police Chief Douglas Sturniolo mentioned that Aravind had been reported as a runaway or missing child about a year prior, but the department had minimal contact with him afterward and was unaware of any previous threats.
The Acton-Boxborough Regional School District is providing mental health support to students and staff. "This is obviously a horrific and tragic situation on many levels, and we are heartbroken for the family, friends, staff and others impacted by this," school officials stated in a release.