HIGHLAND PARK, Ill. — The father of the accused Fourth of July parade killer told The Post on Wednesday that his son talked about the mass shooting in Denmark the night before he began his massacre — and about the suspect in any crime. He washed his hands and found his gun.
The father, Robert Cremo Jr. — who has tapped one of R. Kelly’s lawyers for war claims he helped his mentally disturbed child buy guns — said that the night before Monday’s shooting, he And son Robert Krimo III discussed the 22-year-old Danish man who shot and killed three people at a mall outside Copenhagen on Sunday.
“He goes, ‘Yeah, that guy’s an idiot.’ that’s what he said!” Dad told his son about the Danish shooter.
The father said that his son said, “Such people… [commit mass shootings] To incite those who want to ban all guns. ,
“I spoke to him 13 hours ago” [Monday’s massacre], That’s why I feel like I’m in such a shock. … like, did he have a mental break or something?” the father said of his son.
On Tuesday, Steven Greenberg, who previously accused R.K. in the federal sex-trafficking case of a fallen singing superstar outside Brooklyn. Kelly, announced that Cremo Jr. and his estranged wife Denise had retained him in the wake of their son’s arrest.
The father, a one-time local mayoral candidate who ran a neighborhood sandwich shop, faced a wave of criticism for sponsoring his son’s gun-license application, which allowed Cremo III to take his own life before the age of 21. Permission was given to purchase four guns including the alleged murder weapon. ,
The father sponsored the application three months after officials labeled his son a “clear and present threat” for threatening to kill relatives in 2019.
The incident, which led to police confiscating a sword, dagger and 15 knives from the shooter’s home, was just a “childish explosion”, and the knives were “just a collection”, Cremo Jr. told The Post on Wednesday.
“You know I used to collect coins and baseball cards,” said Dad.
Cremo Jr. said he decided to sponsor his son’s firearms owner’s identification card – or FOID, which allowed the young man to purchase the AR-15 used in the attack – because he thought that Cremo III would be responsible for shooting. Was going to use the weapon for the border.
The father said of his son’s weapons, “he bought everything on his own, and they are registered with him.”
“You know, they drove there, they ordered them, they picked them up, they did their background checks on every single one,” Cremo Jr. said, adding that he had “zero” involvement in the massacre.
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“They make me look like I set them up to do it all,” he said of the critics. “I’ve been here my whole life, and I’m gonna be here, hold your head high, ’cause I didn’t do anything wrong.”
Cremo Jr., who is telling reporters that he is not the father of the shooter, but a caretaker for the home, said he and the suspect’s mother are “devastated” and “floored” over the bloodshed.
While the father said he fully supported his son and would continue to attend all his court hearings, he is “angry” at the tragedy.
“I want a longer sentence,” Cremo said of his 21-year-old son.
“That’s life. You know there are consequences for your actions. He made a choice. He didn’t have to. I think there’s mental illness, obviously. … I didn’t see much in it.” ”
Cremo Jr. insisted that his son’s crimes were not motivated by hatred and added that a relative of a lifelong friend of his was injured in the shooting.
“I’m speechless with it. I was just so surprised. It’s horrible,” he said when asked about the victims.
“It’s real. I mean inevitably I lost a son too. It sucks.”
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