On Sunday, April 9, 2017, teenagers Cassandra (Cassie) Bjorge and Johnny Rider were arrested after a one-hour standoff with the Gwinnett County Police. The standoff ended soon after the SWAT team arrived on the scene at McGinnis Ferry Apartments in Lawrenceville, Georgia. The two were primary suspects in the homicide of Randall and Wendy Bjorge, Cassie’s grandparents. The police received calls from concerned family members claiming to have lost contact with the elderly couple for over a week. The Gwinnett County Police decided to drive to the Bjorge’s home for a welfare checkup. The couple did not answer the door, leaving no option for the police but to leave since it was not an emergency.
The police later received a call from Johnny Rider’s sister, who accused him of beating her and her boyfriend with a baseball bat. The Bjorge’s car was spotted on the scene, giving the police reason to believe the elderly couple could be in danger. The police returned to the Bjorge home, this time they let themselves in. Randall and Wendy were found in their bedroom and bathroom. The couple seemed to have been beaten to death.
After successfully entering the apartment where the teenager suspects were hiding, they were found unconscious, with self-inflicted wounds in an attempt of suicide. The couple was taken to the hospital and Rider was charged with assault for her sister and boyfriend’s accusations.
The police have released new information regarding the case as teens are being charged with murder. According to the police, Cassandra Bjorge confessed to killing grandparents during their court hearing on April 21st. While Bjorge has confessed to the crime, her boyfriend, Johnny Rider, has not. The teen admitted to having murdered the couple and texting her family members pretending to be Wendy. She confessed to slicing their throats and living with them for several days after the murder and pretending they were still alive.
The 17-year-old also admitted to having plans with 18-year-old Johnny Rider to kill other people as well, including his family and Cassie’s mother. According to the police, the couple used a hammer, baseball bat, tire iron, and butcher knives to slice the grand parent’s throats and brutally beat them.
After committing the murder, Bjorge said she and her boyfriend invited friends over to a party and smoked weed in the house, where the grandparents were murdered upstairs.
Cassandra said the reason behind killing her grandparents was because they were becoming too strict.
