Michigan State Shooting Suspect Was A 'Mama's Boy,' Turned 'Evil' After Mom Died

Anthony McRae, the suspect in the Monday mass shooting inside Michigan State University that killed three students, turned "evil and mean" after his mother died of a stroke two years ago, according to his father.

Michael McRae, the 43-year-old suspected gunman's father, said in an interview Tuesday that Anthony's relationship with his mother, Linda McRae, was "tight."

"He was a mama's boy. He loved his mom. They were tight. His mom was like his sister," Michael told NBC News.

But Anthony's behavior and outlook on life "changed" when his mother died of a stroke on Sept. 13, 2020.

Michael said his son quit his job at a warehouse and stayed in his room playing video games all day.

"He was grieving his mom. He wouldn't let it go. He got bitter, bitter and bitter," the father said. "His mom died, and he just started getting evil and mean. He didn't care about anything anymore."

Michael tried to encourage his son to apply for other jobs, seek help through counseling, go to church with him or talk to his father. But Anthony refused his dad's help, telling him, "I'm OK, Dad, I don't need help."

Michael insisted that his son was a "good kid" but acknowledged that "you never know what your kid will do when they walk out the door."

The father said he did not think his son would do harmful things to himself or others, noting that Anthony had no history of violence. But the suspect's father admitted that his son was caught by police carrying a concealed weapon in the past.

According to court documents, police officers in Lansing, Michigan, approached the younger McRae on June 17, 2019, as he was sitting on the back steps of a building smoking a cigarette and asked him if he had any weapons.

Anthony admitted that he had a weapon on him, and Lansing police recovered a Ruger LCP .380 semi-automatic pistol.

The younger McRae was charged with a felony for carrying a concealed weapon, which could land him five years in jail. He was also charged with a misdemeanor, possession of a loaded firearm in or upon a vehicle.

Anthony pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor charge and was sentenced to probation. He was discharged in May 2021.

His father said he did not know why his son had a firearm or how he obtained it. Michael told his son that they "don't need no guns in this house."

Anthony promised to get rid of the firearm but never did, and neighbors complained multiple times that he fired shots outside of their home.

Megan Bender, who lives near the McRae family's home, alleged that Anthony fired his weapon "out of the back door of the house into the yard."

On Monday night, Anthony entered a campus building of Michigan State University and began his shooting spree at students.

The shooting incident pushed campus authorities to order a shelter-in-place for thousands of students. It also sparked a major police operation on the sprawling 5,000-acre campus.

Anthony killed at least three people and injured five others before he shot himself dead.

Michael learned that his son was the suspect in the mass shooting when agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Lansing police officers arrived at his house.

The father did not know how many were killed in the incident until he was interviewed the following morning.