'Please Pick Me Up,' Boy, 12, Tells Police After Fatally Stabbing Playmate, 9

A 9-year-old Michigan boy died after he was repeatedly stabbed in playground dispute in Kentwood in western Michigan early Monday evening, and the 12-year-old claimed responsibility moments later and calmly said to police: “I’ve just stabbed somebody. Please pick me up.”

The boy is now in custody in the Kent County Juvenile Detention Center, WZZM-TV reports.

The fatal stabbing occurred as a group of four youths were playing, but police aren’t sure what caused the 12-year-old in custody to pull out a knife and repeatedly stab Michael Conner Verkerke, who died at a nearby hospital after he ran to his nearby residence and collapsed on the porch.

Police said the attack was “unprovoked,” MLive/The Grand Rapids Press reports.

Kentwood police plan extensive interviews with the boy’s family and others who know him to understand what caused him to lash out.

“This is a true tragedy,” Kentwood Police Chief Thomas Hillen said. “You struggle to understand how and why something like this could happen.”

After the altercation, the 12-year-old left the playground and used a phone belonging to Glen Stacy, who was working in his yard near the park.

When police arrived, the boy was calm and presented himself to police, Stacy said.

During his 911 call, he reportedly said he wanted to die and “didn’t want to be on this Earth anymore.” While speaking with dispatchers, the boy detailed having taken “too many pills” on Monday and said he felt as if no one loved him.

“It was just a sad situation,” Stacy said.

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PHOTO: Police don’t know what caused a 12-year-old to fatally stab a 9-year-old in a Kentwood park early Monday evening. (Screenshot: WZZM-TV video)