‘We love our son’: Parents of alleged serial killer say they are devastated by his arrest

Dec 3, 2017

There has been an arrest in the Tampa Bay killings that terrorized the Seminole Heights neighborhood between October 9 and November 14.

The parents of Howard Donaldson III are “devastated” at their son’s arrest in the shooting deaths of four people.

Rosita Donaldson and Emanuel Donaldson Jr. gave a press conference along with their criminal defense lawyer Ralph Fernandez and during it they spoke of how the murders are out of character for their 24-year-old son. They say he grew up in a good home influenced by church and faith.

Donaldson was arrest and charged with four counts of first-degree murder on Tuesday when a manager at a Ybor City McDonald’s contacted police after he handed her a food bag that held a gun. Authorities were able to match the weapon to all four killings.

According to police, when the suspect handed Delonda Walker the firearm he said he was planning on leaving the state of Florida.

During the press conference, reporters asked the Donaldsons if they could understand why police were accusing their son of the murders, his mother answered, “No, I can’t.”

Rosita Donaldson went on to say that while they “love” and “support” their son, they are “heartbroken” for the families of the victims who they do not know personally.

“I prayed for those families when it first started,” she said tearfully. “And then when they arrested my son, devastation, because I love my son, and it was disbelief that this was happening to our family. And we question why.”

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They have not seen their son, who goes by the nickname Trai since the arrest but Rosita said that he does not have the “personality” to have murdered four people.

“Anybody that knows Trai knows that’s not Trai,” she stated. “… That’s not my son.”

Emanuel said that the arrest has been “difficult for everyone” and that they are going to need their faith to “get through this ordeal.”

“It’s your ability to pray for people you don’t even know,” he said, before adding that he hopes the love they have for their son “gets him through.”

The couple said that they want their son to know that “We believe in him, and we’re here for him.”

Authorities say that Howard Donaldson bought the gun used in the murders just six days before the shooting death of Benjamin Mitchell, 22, on October 9.

There is still no motive in the killings and Donaldson is being held without bail until his court date on Tuesday. He has yet to enter a plea.