Attacker’s Father: If He Did It, He Should Do 50

It is very hard. I would like to apologise to his parents for everything they went through, the mother of an attacked on Luka Ritz said.

ZAGREB, CROATIA – The parents of one of the suspects arrested for attacking Luka Ritz in June of this year spent the whole of Wednesday in court with their sun, after which they expressed regret for what the parents of Luka Ritz had to go through, the Vecernji list daily reported.

- I am sorry. It is very hard for me. I would like to apologise to his parents for everything they went through – the mother said, adding that her son had been in the wrong place at the wrong time and that he did not even touch Luka.

The father was exceptionally harsh in denouncing the murder of Luka Ritz and is seeking a high penalty for his son if he is proven guilty.

- If he is guilty, he should do 50 years in jail. I don’t care if he is a hundred times my son. I feel sorry for Luka. I feel sorry for that boy, that’s all – the father said, adding that he wished to apologise to Luka’s parents.

‘I am afraid the neighbours will lynch us’ 

The mother noticed changes in her son the past couple of months and she suspected he wwas hiding something. He lost a lot of weight and sighed often. Unfortunately, she learnt of her son’s dark side two days ago.

- He promised the boys he would not betray them. Because of that promise now his life is destroyed: he lost out on a year at school and I fear that the neighbours will lynch us – the mother of the attacker said and again reiterated that her son did not beat up Luka.

The grandmother of the same assailant said she was watching the television all the time to hear news about her grandson. She added that when his parents come home they cry in pain.

All of the five suspects arrested in the murder of Luka Ritz live half a kilometres away from each other in the Novi Zagreb area. They come from average Croatian working families. The neighbours have only nice things to say about them and claim that they had never caused any trouble. One of the attackers was described in a local café as a tom boy and neighbours recalled that when he was a child he was rather mischievous. The younger neighbours recollect that he had recently beat up a boy from the neighbourhood, the daily reported.

Five suspects, of whom four are minors, were arrested on Tuesday for beating up 19-year-old high school senior Luka Ritz and his friend in Zagreb on June 1 of this year. Luka was treated in hospital, but released. Ten days later he died on the operating table as a consequence of the beating.