The death of his mother may have sent the Florida mass shooting suspect over the edge, according to his family.
Nikolas Cruz, 19, and his younger brother Zachary were adopted by Roger and Lynda Cruz when they were infants.
Roger passed away from a heart attack when Nikolas was 9, leaving Lynda to care for the growing boys by herself.
Lynda, 68, was healthy but checked into a clinic in October before being rushed to the hospital.
After the death of Lynda, Nikolas Cruz moved in with the family of a classmate.
An attorney for the family said that Cruz had become “depressed” following his mother’s death, although he had been going to therapy sessions to try to deal with the grief.
The family is shocked at what happened.
The family knew Cruz had an AR-15-style assault weapon but insisted that it be kept locked away in a safe.
However, people who lived near Lynda and Roger Cruz were not as surprised.
They described incidents over the years, such as stealing the neighbor’s mail, shooting squirrels with pellet guns, and picking fights with other children.
One neighbor even caught him peeking into her bedroom window.
Former classmates also said that Cruz loved guns and knives, with one describing him as a “psycho.” He made numerous posts on Instagram holding weapons, and made a threat against the school at least once.
Even before his mother’s death, he was expelled from school for disciplinary problems while “many of his acquaintances had cut ties in part because of his unnerving Instagram posts,” according to The Post.
The family that was letting Cruz stay with them submitted to a home search and is cooperating fully with police.
“We were down there late talking to them, answering all the police questions, showing them phones. They opened their house up. ... This family and the son have cooperated with law enforcement every which way they can,” Lewis said. “As the mother told me, if they had any inkling ... that this kid was capable of something like this, they never would’ve brought him into their home.”
