Son accused of killing dad after stabbing him 57 times in Topeka to be committed to state security hospital
TOPEKA (KSNT) - A local man accused of fatally stabbing his dad nearly 60 times last year has been declared not guilty Tuesday.
Robert Fapp, 38, of Topeka was found not guilty on all charges following a bench trial on Jan. 21 by reason of "mental disease or defect," according to court records. Robert will be committed to a state security hospital. He was accused of stabbing his mom and dad in April 2024 at a home in the Potwin neighborhood which resulted in his father's death.
Officers with the Topeka Police Department (TPD) were called just before 8 p.m. on April 16 to a home in the 400 block of Southwest Woodlawn Avenue on reports of a stabbing. Two people, later identified as Katherine and Ross Fapp, were transported to a local hospital for care with Ross later dying due to his injuries.
Court documents obtained by 27 News in the days after the stabbing showed police found Katherine on the front porch of the home bleeding heavily. Officers found Ross and Robert in an upstairs bedroom where the pair were struggling for control over a knife. Robert was reportedly straddling his father and trying to stab him in the chest.
Ross allegedly sustained the injuries when he tried to protect his wife from his son. Law enforcement reported that Ross was stabbed a total of 57 times during the encounter before dying at a local hospital.
The Shawnee County District Attorney's office charged Robert shortly after the stabbing. He was initially charged with the following:
- Murder in the first degree.
- Murder in the first degree.
- Two counts of mistreatment of a dependent adult or elder person.
- Attempted murder in the first degree.
- Aggravated battery.
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