Antonios Pagourtzis—the father of the suspected Santa Fe High School shooter, Dimitrios Pagourtzis—believes that his son was bullied in school, according to the Associated Press.
“Something must have happened now, this last week,” Antonios said. “Somebody probably came and hurt him, and since he was a solid boy, I don’t know what could have happened. I can’t say what happened. All I can say is what I suspect as a father.” According to Antonios, Dimitrios took a shotgun and handgun that his father owned.
“My son, to me, is not a criminal, he’s a victim,” he said. Dimitrios’ lawyers shared that they’ve been investigating “teacher-on-student” bullying, perhaps with Dimitrios’ football coaches. The school has claimed that they have looked into those accusations and “confirmed” they weren’t true. During a prison visit, Dimitrios reportedly told his father that he acted alone and avoided hurting the kids “who were the good kids so they can tell his story.”
The shooter left 10 dead and 10 more injured at Santa Fe High School on May 18. Dimitrios was subsequently charged with capital murder and aggravated assault of a police officer.
Over the weekend, it was confirmed that Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt would pay for the funerals of all the victims.
