Bomb suspect ‘attracted’ to Trump
Attorney for family members says Sayoc ‘was someone lost’
When Cesar Altieri Sayoc was arrested Friday, accused of sending at least 13 mail bombs in recent days to prominent critics of President Donald Trump, a glimpse of the Florida 56-year-old’s white van seemed to offer the most immediate insight into his motivations.
The van’s windows were blanketed with pro-Trump decals, alongside images of prominent Democratic figures that were unflattering, at best, or literally in the crosshairs of a red target, at worst. Other stickers blared “Dishonest Media” and “CNN sucks.”
On Twitter, Sayoc trafficked conspiracy theories and ranted about liberal billionaire George Soros, former President Barack Obama, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and others whose politics were out of line with his.
But nearly two decades ago, when Miami attorney Ronald Lowy first met Sayoc to represent him during some legal troubles, Lowy said Sayoc struck him as an insecure man, “like a 14-year-old in an adult’s body,” who was obsessed with bodybuilding and nightclubs — and who had no interest whatsoever in politics.
Lowy told CNN’s Anderson Cooper on Friday that Sayoc’s father had abandoned the family when Sayoc was young and that, in his opinion, Sayoc had struggled with identity issues as a result.
“This was someone lost,” Lowy told Cooper. “He was looking for anything, and he found a father in Trump.”
Despite his former political apathy, Sayoc quickly latched onto Trump as he emerged on the political stage and ultimately became president, said Lowy, who is now representing Sayoc’s family members.
“It’s my opinion that he was attracted to the Trump formula of reaching out ... to these types of outsiders, people who don’t fit in, people who are angry at America, telling them that they have a place at the table, telling them that it’s OK to get angry,” Lowy told Cooper.
“I believe that that was a motivating factor. Do I blame the president solely?” he added. “No, this is a sick individual. I actually blame all of us. We have to start arranging for treatment when we start to see the problems.”
Lowy told The Washington Post he is representing Sayoc’s mother, Madeline Giardiello, and sisters Sabrina and Tina.
Giardiello, 76, has been active in Democratic politics and was an officer on her condominium board in Aventura for many years, Lowy said. She has not spoken to her son in three years, and he never showed an interest in politics when he and his family were last in touch, Lowy said.
“It’s my opinion that he was attracted to the Trump formula of reaching out ... to these types of outsiders, people who don’t fit in, people who are angry at America, telling them that they have a place at the table, telling them that it’s OK to get angry,”
RONALD LOWY ATTORNEY REPRESENTING MOTHER, SISTERS OF SUSPECT CESAR SAYOC