The uncle of suspected Highland Park mass shooter Robert Crimo III is apologizing for the July Fourth massacre, saying he’s “deeply, deeply sorry” for the deadly attack.
Paul Crimo said he lived with his accused killer nephew and the 21-year-old’s father, with the young man staying in a separate apartment in the back of the local home.
“I just want to say I’m deeply, deeply sorry for everyone that lost their lives and got injured,”
Paul Crimo told WFLD-TV late Monday, after his nephew was named as a person of interest in the bloodshed earlier in the day at an Independence Day parade in the wealthy Chicago suburb.
Authorities have said they believe that Crimo III used a high-powered AR-15-style rifle to shoot into the crowd from a rooftop, killing seven innocent people and injuring more than 30.
“I just want to say I’m deeply, deeply sorry for everyone that lost their lives and got injured,” Paul Crimo said. “From the bottom of my heart, I’m heartbroken, and my heart is shattered to hear this. I can’t even believe it.”
Paul Crimo said he and his brother, Robert Crimo Jr., who unsuccessfully ran for mayor of Highland Park in 2019, are well-known throughout the area.
“I just want to say I’m deeply, deeply sorry for everyone that lost their lives and got injured,” Paul Crimo said. FOX 32 Chicago
Robert Crimo III and his father lived with the accused killer’s uncle, Paul Crimo. Robert Crimo via REUTERS
Authorities believe that Robert Crimo used a high-powered AR-15-style rifle to shoot into the crowd from a rooftop. Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Chicago Sun-Times via AP
Seven people were killed and over 30 were injured in the shooting. WLS/ABC7 via REUTERS“We have a good character,” Paul Crimo said of the pair. “Everybody loves us, and this just breaks my heart to hear about all of this.”
Paul Crimo told CNN and WFLD that he saw no warning signs ahead of the mass shooting. He told the station that he last saw his nephew late Sunday.
“When I went home, I said, ‘Hi’ to him, and then when I came back downstairs, I said, ‘Bye,’ he said, ‘Bye,’ and that was it,” Crimo said. “I’ve seen nothing that would trigger him doing this.”
Paul Crimo said “there were no signs of trouble” from his alleged shooter nephew. Max Herman/AFP via Getty Images
Police deploy after gunfire erupted at a Fourth of July parade. Tannen Maury/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
A police officer covers his face as he walks past abandoned chairs and debris in the wake of the July 4 shooting. Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune via APThe suspected gunman, who authorities said legally purchased the gun used in the attack in Illinois within the past year, had never said anything concerning, Paul Crimo said.
“He has helped me around the house at times,” Paul Crimo said. “And there were no signs of trouble. I saw no signs of trouble. And if I did see signs, I would’ve said something. But there was no signs of trouble.”
More coverage on the Highland Park parade shooting
Crimo said his nephew didn’t go to college and was a “YouTube rapper” who liked to draw but kept to himself. He previously worked at Panera but had been recently unemployed, according to the report.
“He’s a real quiet kid, he keeps everything to himself, and he doesn’t express himself out,” Paul Crimo said. “He just, like, sits down on his computer; there’s no, like, interaction between him and me, basically.”
Paul Crimo told the Chicago Sun-Times that his nephew kept his silver Acura parked on the front lawn of the home.
“He was always very respectable,” Crimo told the newspaper of his nephew. “I can’t say nothing bad about him.”
Paul Crimo said he was having trouble processing Monday’s mass shooting.
“I can’t even believe it, it seems like it’s a dream,” he told WFLD. “I’m deeply heartbroken, and I’ll be heartbroken for the rest of my life. I just want to tell everybody that I’m very sorry from the bottom of my heart.”
