Following the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, the father of the 18-year-old gunman spoke out and wanted everyone to know that he was sorry for his son’s actions.
“I just want the people to know I’m sorry, man, [for] what my son did,” said the elder Salvador Ramos, 42, in an interview with The Daily Beast.
The younger Salvador Ramos fatally shot 19 children and two teachers on May 24 at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde.
At least 17 more people were injured and sent to hospitals in the area for treatment.
“I never expected my son to do something like that,” said the father. “He should’ve just killed me, you know, instead of doing something like that to someone.”
Details are still unfolding to determine the motive of the shooting. According to authorities, the gunman was described as a local high school dropout with no criminal record and no known mental health issues.
The elder Ramos said he was at work on the day of the shooting and found out about it when his mother called to inform him. He began calling the local jail in a panic, asking if his son was there.
However, he discovered that his son was dead.
“They killed my baby, man,” he said. “I’m never gonna see my son again, just like they’re not gonna see their kids. And that hurts me.”
Ramos stated that his son was “a good person” who “stuck to himself” despite the horrific mass shooting that he carried out on Tuesday. The father stated he had no idea why his son had become so violent or why he had designated the school as a target.
“I want my son’s story out there,” said Ramos. “I don’t want them calling him a monster… they don’t know nothing, man. They don’t know anything he was going through.”
The dad acknowledged that he was estranged from his son due to the pandemic and because he worked outside of Uvalde, digging holes around utility poles for inspection.
Ramos explained that his mother was fighting cancer and that he could not risk her being infected with COVID-19. He went on to say that around a month ago, his son became annoyed with the COVID measures and refused to speak to him. Since then, Ramos had not had contact with him.
Ramos also criticized Adriana Reyes, his son’s mother, for not purchasing more school materials and clothing. He claimed that his son was tormented at school for wearing the same high-water jeans every day, which led to him dropping out.
The father stated his son complained a lot about his maternal grandmother, whom the younger Ramos shot before the shooting at the elementary school. He claimed he offered his son the opportunity to live with his paternal grandparents, but the adolescent declined.