Nikolas Cruz, a 23-year-old man who is thought to have shot and killed 17 people at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018, is currently being sentenced. New video from that day shows that the alleged shooter went to a McDonald’s right after the shooting.
On Thursday, July 21, the fourth day of the suspect’s sentencing trial, video of Cruz sitting next to John Wilford at a McDonald’s was shown to the jury. Madeline Wilford’s brother, Wilford, was shot and killed by Cruz during the massacre.
The trial is likely to take a few months, and the hearing will decide whether Nikolas Cruz gets life in prison or the death penalty.
Nikolas Cruz went to his old high school in Parkland, Florida, on February 14, 2018, with an AR-15 and several magazines. He was 19 years old at the time. He was found guilty of attacking students and staff members, killing 17 and hurting 17 more.
Nikolas Cruz after the attack, at McDonald’s
Nikolas Cruz was able to get away from the scene of the attack by blending in with other students. The other students did not know that the shooter was among them.
Surveillance footage showed that as he left the school with the crowd, Cruz first went to a nearby Subway and bought a drink at the counter. He then went to a McDonald’s where the brother of Madeline Wilford, one of his victims, was sitting.
John Wilford said that Cruz was at the fast food place talking to other Stoneman Douglas students who had to leave the school. Wilford said in his testimony that Cruz talked to him like an old friend and even asked him for a ride.
“Everyone was a little scared because they didn’t know what was going on. I tried to call my sister, but she didn’t answer, so I called my mom and asked her to meet me at McDonald’s.”
Wilford added that he tried to talk to Cruz, who was shy and quiet, and said:
Wilford said that he turned Cruz down for a ride because he was trying to call his sister. He said that after the attack, a lot of students went to McDonald’s to get together.
Wilford said,