In an interview Wednesday with the New York Post, Robert Crimmo Jr. said Sunday night he and his son were discussing a mass shooting in Copenhagen, where a man killed three people at a shopping mall. The elder Crimo said his son called the shooter an “idiot” before adding: “People like that… [commit mass shootings] to empower people who want to ban all guns.” “I talked to him 13 hours ago [the parade attack]Crimo Jr. said. to the newspaper. “That’s why I guess I’m in such shock… Like, did he have a mental break or something?” The debate is shocking, given that Crimo III has since admitted to investigators that he was “dressing like a girl and covering his tattoos with makeup because people recognized him” before he allegedly opened fire at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade. During the attack, Crimo III told investigators he used three 30-round clips in his Smith and Wesson MNP 15 to attack the parade participants, stopping to reload twice. Prosecutors then revealed during a bond hearing Wednesday, Crimo III told investigators he left the rooftop he was using as a sniper’s nest, but inadvertently left his rifle behind when it fell out of his bag. The gun used was legally obtained in 2020. Illinois State Police told the Daily Beast that Crimo III’s father supported his son’s gun permit application, a few months after Crimo III allegedly attempted to kill himself, spoke of “ killing everyone’ and had 16 knives, a dagger, and a sword that he took from his house. The gun was also acquired after police revealed they had previous terrifying run-ins with Crimo III. In a September 15, 2019 Highland Park police report obtained by The Daily Beast, officers went to the Crimo family’s home after a person said the 21-year-old had “stated he was going to kill everyone” in his family. On Tuesday, authorities confirmed the September 2019 incident in which Crimo III allegedly threatened to “kill everyone” in his family while collecting 16 knives, a dagger and a sword. He had also attempted suicide in April, police said. When officers arrived at the home, both Crimo III and his mother said he was depressed and had a “history of drug use.” “Robert was not forthcoming about the language he used [during the threat] neither did his mother,” the report states. The publication added that Crimo Jr. he was the one who told police about the son’s collection of knives stored in a tin lunch box, along with a 12-inch dagger and a 24-inch Samurai blade” in his bedroom closet. . Crimo III then told police he was not harming himself or others. Crimo Jr. dismissed the idea that his son’s 2019 incident was dangerous — telling the Post it was just a “childish tantrum” and insisting the massive collection of knives was “just a collection.” “You know I used to collect coins and baseball cards,” Dad added. Months after the incident, Crimo Jr. supported his son’s gun permit application, which allowed Crimo III to purchase several guns—including one he bought online and picked up at local gun dealer Red Dot Arms, The Daily Beast exclusively reported Wednesday. On Wednesday, Crimo Jr. dismissed any notion of wrongdoing in helping his son obtain a gun owner’s ID, telling the Post he thought his son was just going to use his gun at the range. “He bought everything himself and it’s registered to him,” the dad added. “You know, he drove there, he ordered them, he picked them up, they did a background check on everybody.” Crimo Jr., who ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Highland Park in 2019, also added that he had “zero” involvement in Monday’s attack and criticized anyone who said otherwise. “I’ve been here my whole life, and I’m going to stay here, I’m holding my head up, because I didn’t do anything wrong,” he said, later adding that while he’s “devastated” by the incident he hopes his son pays for his crimes. “I want a big sentence,” he said. “He made a choice. He didn’t have to do that. I think there’s mental illness there, obviously.”
