Highland Park shooting suspect Robert "Bobby" Crimo III was a loner, who lost his job during the peak of the pandemic and lived alone in an apartment behind his parents' home, his uncle has claimed. Paul Crimo, the uncle of Robert Crimo, claimed that his nephew was a normal kid and never showed any signs of violence and aggression.
Paul Crimo made the comments during an interview with CNN hours after Robert Crimo was arrested. He said this despite the fact that Robert Crimo posted his sinister rap videos and cryptic drawings and photos on social media, which were revealed to the world. Robert Crimo was arrested hours after he shot dead six people and injured 38 others at a 4th of July parade at Highland Park.
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Robert Crimo, 22, was arrested on Monday around 6:30 pm after being on the run for eight hours. He has not yet been charged, but he is now in detention while awaiting his initial court appearance.
"I'm heartbroken. I'm so heartbroken. There were no signs that I saw that would make him do this. He's a quiet kid. He's usually on his own. He's a lonely, quiet person. He keeps everything to himself," Paul Crimo, told CNN.
"Everything was as normal," he said, adding that the night before the incident, he was using his computer while seated in a recliner at home. "Everything was as normal," he stated.
Police said at a press conference to announce the arrest that they think Robert Crimo was behind the hail of gunfire that erupted during the traditional Fourth of July parade. However, Paul Crimo told CNN that he had never seen his nephew act violently or display unsettling behavior.
"I have nothing bad to say about him," he told the outlet. However, he added: "He's a quiet kid. He's usually on his own. He's a lonely, quiet person. He keeps everything to himself."
"I associate with him, but I don't really like to engage with him. I say hi and then when I leave I say bye. That's it," he told CNN.
Loner? Not Really
The uncle also said that Robert Crumo probably didn't have a job. He said that he was working at Panera Bread but lost the job after the Covid-19 outbreak. Since then, Robert Crimo had been spending more time on YouTube and was staying at an apartment all alone, although the apartment was just behind his parents' home.
The attack has not yet been addressed by Robert Crimo's parents His father Bob Sr. ran unsuccessfully for mayor against Nancy Rotering.
Robert Crimo also goes by Awake the Rapper and has over 16,000 listeners per month on Spotify.
Unsettling footage of Robert Crimo putting shots on the floor of a classroom while wearing armor in what appears to be a joke about school shootings and a drawing of him shooting people online are among the music videos he posted online last fall.
The most recent photo Robert Crimo posted on his Discord server was a picture of Budd Dwyer, the Pennsylvania state treasurer who committed suicide on live television in the 1980s, with the caption, "I wish politicians still gave speeches like this." Robert Crimo also had a Discord server where he would chat with friends and admirers.
Along with talking about violent portrayals of murder and death, he routinely commented on a message board and made references to suicide. One recent video he shared showed a beheading.
Mark Heymann, 22, a former classmate of Robert Crimo, told NBC that the only thing he could say about the alleged shooter was that he was a rapper who had music out while they were both attending Highland Park High School.
"He always seemed a little off, but I can't describe it much beyond that," Heymann said.
Robert Crimo would also play loud heavy metal while riding about on an electric bike, according to a neighbor who talked with the Daily Beast.
