Calgary stabbing suspect’s parents ‘deeply saddened’
Matthew de Grood’s mother and father grapple with making sense of the tragedy
CALGARY— The parents of an alleged mass murderer are struggling to understand how their son, who they describe as a “great kid full of love, kindness and respect for others,” stands accused of stabbing five young people to death. Speaking publicly for the first time on Thursday, Douglas and Susan de Grood said they, too, want to know what happened early Tuesday when their 22-year-old son, Matthew, was arrested and charged with five counts of first-degree murder in the Calgary house party stabbings. “We are shocked and devastated and we are trying to make sense of what happened,” said a visibly emotional Douglas de Grood, a senior Calgary police officer. “We are deeply saddened for what the families and friends of the victims are going through. Their lives have been turned upside down. We know words cannot begin to ease your pain and suffering. Please accept our deepest condolences and know you are in our hearts, our thoughts and our prayers.” The couple spoke to the media from the steps of the office of their son’s lawyer, Allan Fay. Douglas, who Fay said has “mobility issues” and requires a cane, was at times shaking and crying as he read his prepared statement on behalf of himself and his wife, who held onto him. Matthew de Grood, currently remanded to the Southern Alberta Forensic Psychiatry Centre pending his next court date on Tuesday, was a bright child active in sports and in the community while in high school and at the University of Calgary, where he studied psychology, said his father. Douglas said his only son — the de Groods also have a daughter — helped raise funds for charities through his passion for running, and had a bright future ahead of him as he was about to enter law school this fall. “Like any parent can tell you, a love for your child is unconditional. And we love Matthew dearly,” he said. The de Groods have yet to visit their son, who Fay said is lucid, but they will likely see him soon. Matthew de Grood remains very much a mystery. The Calgary Herald, quoting an anonymous police officer and close friend of de Grood’s father, reported that he had recently become more withdrawn and had sent his parents text messages the night of the murders that led them to believe he was going to commit suicide. The newspaper said Douglas went looking for his son, while Susan reported her concerns to police. On Thursday, Fay said he could not “confirm or deny anything.” He did say, however, that he has not received any information that de Grood has a history of mental illness. Ted Slone, a PhD student in psychology at the University of Calgary who was a teaching assistant for one of de Grood’s classes in 2012, said he was an above-average student, describing him as “quiet, but friendly.”
“He seemed to be normal by all accounts, socially well-adjusted and well-liked,” said Slone.
The investigation at 11 Butler Cres., where the tragedy took place, will continue until at least Saturday. Police are still trying to establish a motive for the stabbings that took the lives of Lawrence Hong, 27, Josh Hunter, 22, and Kaiti Perras, Jordan Segura and Zackariah Rathwell, all 23, in what Police Chief Rick Hanson described as the worst mass murder in the city’s history.
Calgary police spokesman Kevin Brookwell said Thursday police are looking at de Grood’s online and texting activity.
Police have previously said he was invited to the house party in Calgary’s Brentwood neighbourhood to celebrate the end of classes, coming straight from his job at a nearby Safeway store. Brookwell said de Grood knew at least one person at the party “very well.”
Who that person is has not been made publicly available. Investigators have been interviewing and even reinterviewing the 20 or so people who were still at the party around 1:20 a.m. when the stabbings began. With files from Sean Tepper