The shocked parents of Elliot Rodger are finally speaking out about his massacre at the University of California, Santa Barbara, telling ABC News they are distraught over the lives lost at the hands of their son.
Friend Simon Astaire, who spoke on behalf of the family, said Rodger’s parents, Peter and Chin, were “crying with pain” and are mourning the innocent lives that were lost more than their son’s death.
“Literally, their speech is now stuttered,” Astaire said. “They’re unable to really articulate things in a full sentence.”
The parents addressed their pain and sadness in a written statement to ABC News:
“We are crying in pain for the victims and their families,” the statement reads. “It breaks our heart on a level we didn’t think possible. The feeling of knowing that it was our son’s actions that caused the tragedy can only be described as Hell on earth.”
During the revealing interview with ABC, Astaire also spoke about Rodger’s battles with mental illness throughout his life. Astaire has known the young adult since he was a boy.
“I understand he was on Xanax for about six months,” Astaire said, with Rodger refusing to take medication on previous occasions.
Astaire thinks back to his encounters with Rodger. The boy was wrapped up within himself, Astaire said, distant and removed, even at dinners and parties.
“I thought he was the loneliest person I’ve ever seen in my entire life,” Astaire said. “He was an odd child, didn’t quite fit into his skin.
“He was quite shaky when you met him. He was a tragic figure. And now when I talk about him, knowing what he did, he is in many ways a monster.”
Watch the interview above.
SOURCE: ABC, GMA
