Zach Cruz, Florida school shooter's brother, robbed of inheritance, police say - The Washington Post

But erstwhile the Parkland schoolhouse shooter looked up, determination was 1 idiosyncratic helium did not see.

His brother.

Zachary Cruz, 22, was the lone adjacent household subordinate helium had left. When Cruz went connected a sidesplitting rampage astatine his erstwhile precocious school, it was Zach, past 17, who agonized implicit whether helium could person done thing to forestall it. When Cruz was arrested, it was Zach who went into the interrogation country to demand, “Why did you bash this?” When Cruz started to sob, it was Zach who wrapped his older member successful his arms.

“I’m gonna travel to your trial. I’ll travel to everything,” Zach promised his brother, who helium ever calls Nik, a transcript of the 2018 speech shows. “I curse connected everything I love, I volition travel spot you each accidental I’m given. All right? No substance what happens.”

Four and a fractional years later, Zach hadn’t been to Florida successful months. He seldom held online video visits with his brother. And contempt being the astir highly anticipated witnesser successful the decease punishment trial, Zach ne'er came to testify.

“His member loves him,” the shooter’s nationalist defender had assured the assemblage during her closing statement.

The authoritative objected. “Not successful evidence,” helium said.

To the defence team, Zach not taking the basal was a mislaid accidental to amusement what the Cruz brothers had endured increasing up. To the prosecutors, it was a missed accidental to cross-examine the idiosyncratic who whitethorn person champion understood the intelligence authorities of 1 of the nation’s deadliest schoolhouse shooters.

But Zach’s lack was besides noticeable to investigators acold from Florida, who saw it arsenic different motion of what they had suspected for much than a year: Zachary Cruz was successful trouble.

On Oct. 5, 1 week earlier the verdict, constabulary raided the location wherever Zach lives successful Virginia. Zach was photographed sitting extracurricular the house, surrounded by Augusta County sheriff’s deputies. But they weren’t determination to apprehension him. They said helium was a unfortunate of a crime.

The alleged perpetrators were Richard Moore and Mike Donovan, some 45, the Virginia entrepreneurs who offered to instrumentality Zach successful soon aft the shooting. In depositions and erstwhile interviews, Zach has called the couple his guardians, saying they gave him a home, a household and a spot to bash the 1 happening helium loved, skateboarding.

But constabulary and tribunal records allege that Moore and Donovan, who were already being prosecuted by authorities and national agencies for their business practices, stole the wealth Zach inherited from his precocious mother’s property — much than $400,000 — to wage taxes, bills and car payments connected their Ferrari.

During the raid of the couple’s location and concern headquarters, constabulary collected much than 90 phones, computers and different devices arsenic imaginable evidence. Moore and Donovan were charged with obtaining wealth by mendacious pretenses and exploiting idiosyncratic who is mentally incapacitated. They were released from jailhouse connected $50,000 bonds.

The men person called the charges “bogus.” They contend Zach is being victimized not by them, but by the Augusta County Sheriff’s department, accusing its deputies of handcuffing and holding Zach astatine gunpoint during the raid.

“We emotion Zach, and we would ne'er exploit him,” Donovan wrote successful an email to The Washington Post, saying Zach has “always had 100% power implicit what happened to his money.”

The arrests of Moore and Donovan came much than a twelvemonth aft a Virginia societal services bureau began to question whether Zach, who had nary different household looking retired for him, was being taken vantage of.

Though Zach is an big and Moore and Donovan person nary ineligible guardianship implicit him, helium has go entangled successful the analyzable web that surrounds the mates — 1 involving dozens of lawsuits, a myriad of spinoff businesses, an FBI probe and a contentious nationalist conflict with world TV prima Dog the Bounty Hunter.

On the time of the verdict successful Florida, the assemblage delivered a decisive result for Nikolas Cruz: Instead of being executed, helium volition walk the remainder of his beingness successful prison.

But for Zach, the aboriginal is overmuch little certain. He ne'er finished precocious schoolhouse and does not person a job. If convicted, the men who took him successful could spell to prison. Moore is facing adjacent much situation clip successful abstracted cases involving perjury and taxation fraud. And according to constabulary records, Zach’s inheritance wealth is gone.

After a Post newsman spoke to Zach for this communicative successful September, Zach’s telephone fig was changed. Additional attempts to interrogation him successful idiosyncratic were unsuccessful.

Moore and Donovan, who are expected to plead not blameworthy to the charges against them, proceed to station photos of Zach connected societal media. Following their archetypal quality successful the case, they shared a photograph of their household lasting extracurricular the Augusta County courthouse.

Zach’s limb was wrapped astir Moore and Donovan. He was smiling. Two words were embroidered connected his shirt: “Go away.”

Zach had known Moore and Donovan for little than 2 weeks erstwhile helium agreed to determination with them to Virginia. It was May 2018. He was orphaned, stateless and connected probation.

His adoptive mother, who had raised him and his older member since they were babies, had died unexpectedly of pneumonia successful November 2017. Three months later, connected Valentine’s Day, Nikolas Cruz opened occurrence wrong Marjory Stoneman Douglas High, sidesplitting three unit members and 14 students — radical Zach had known increasing up.

After Zach was interviewed by detectives for hours, helium hid retired from quality cameras for days. In March, helium took his skateboard to the Stoneman Douglas campus, trying to grapple with what his member had done there. He was arrested for trespassing.

Zach spent 10 days successful jail, overmuch of it connected termination watch, according to his nationalist defender astatine the time. He was past placed connected probation and sent backmost to the location of a erstwhile neighbour helium had been surviving with since his mother’s death. By May, the neighbour had kicked him retired and called constabulary connected him for driving a car without a license.

But this clip erstwhile Zach was released from constabulary custody, helium was told determination were 3 radical who wanted to conscionable him: Moore, Donovan, and their adopted 14-year-old son. They took Zach to the penthouse of the oceanfront edifice wherever they were staying, bought him apparel from the edifice acquisition store and told him they were determination to help.

Soon, Zach was backmost successful beforehand of the justice overseeing his probation.

Two of the couple’s employees testified that they would beryllium providing Zach with an flat of his own, online schooling, play counseling and a $13 an hr occupation doing attraction work.

“You request to conscionable instrumentality this infinitesimal and admit what they are offering you,” the judge, Melinda Kirsch Brown, told Zach, granting him support to move.

Donovan and Moore, whose records see convictions for expansive larceny, forgery and fraudulent checks, did not instrumentality the stand. A signaling of the proceeding shows nary 1 asking who they were oregon wherefore they were getting involved. No 1 brought up the media coverage of the allegations against their multimillion dollar business, Nexus Services.

For the past 7 years, advocacy groups and authorities attorneys wide person accused Nexus of exploiting undocumented immigrants by bailing them retired of detention, past requiring them to wage exorbitant fees to support their freedom. Lawsuits and investigations against the institution person mounted from astir a twelve states and national agencies, including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. In immoderate cases, the lawsuits were dismissed oregon are inactive pending. In others, Nexus has been ordered to wage millions successful damages.

Donovan describes himself arsenic the pastor of First Christian Church Universalist successful Harrisonburg, Va. The religion seldom meets in person, but its website advertises the podcast, publication and businesses of “Rev. Mike.”

As Nexus made a sanction for itself, Donovan has consistently been the public face of the company, promoting a premix of societal justness advocacy and anti-government tirades. Moore, whom Donovan said helium joined successful 2016, deals with the company’s finances and tends to their broadside projects, including a store selling video games and Disney collectibles.

They are known for their generosity — providing their employees and friends with homes and vacations — and for their vindictiveness — filing lawsuits, launching societal media attacks and admitting to hiring paid protesters to people those they comprehend to beryllium their enemies.

Nexus has been sued repeatedly by employees who accidental they were ne'er paid and clients who accidental they were scammed. At the aforesaid time, the institution has filed high-profile lawsuits of its own, typically successful cases already successful the news. It sued the Trump medication for separating families astatine the borderline and sued the constabulary main of Charlottesville for failing to forestall unit astatine the 2017 “Unite the Right” rally.

It has besides spun disconnected a multitude of different ventures. At assorted times, the institution has tally “Nexus Investigations & Security,” “Homes by Nexus,” “Nexus Health Inc.” and “Entertainment by Nexus.”

The transportation to Zach led to more lawsuits, much spinoffs and much headlines. Within a twelvemonth Zach moving to Virginia, Nexus lawyers filed 2 lawsuits against Broward County officials, saying Zach’s rights had been violated aft helium was detained for trespassing. With a quality league successful beforehand of section and nationalist media successful Washington, Nexus launched “We Isolate No-One,” an anti-bullying hotline. The fig is present disconnected.

When Zach gave interviews astir his caller life, arsenic helium did with The Washington Post in 2019, helium was monitored astatine each times by Nexus employees, who recorded his interactions with a reporter.

“If I didn’t conscionable Mike and Richard, I don’t cognize what would person happened,” Zach said astatine the time. “They consciousness similar parents to me. ... If I left, I wouldn’t find that anyplace else.”

He’d grown up successful a location wherever his parent unplugged his Xbox to prevention connected electricity. In Donovan and Moore’s 4,700 square-foot location successful Fishersville, Va., helium had his ain chamber and a country conscionable for gaming, with a monolithic TV and aggregate systems to play with their lad Sam.

Instead of the attraction occupation and precocious schoolhouse classes that had been described to his probation judge, Zach joined Donovan and Moore connected concern trips, sleeping precocious successful luxury edifice rooms. He posed for household photos, celebrated Christmas, and each clip helium cracked his skateboard trying retired a caller trick, helium was capable to bargain a caller one. The mates called him “our son."

Zach expressed a tendency for a quiescent beingness retired of the spotlight. But Donovan and Moore continued to question it.

In 2021, they began promoting an online streaming level called “TV Unleashed.” Its centerpiece was “Dog Unleashed,” a caller world amusement astir Dog the Bounty Hunter, Duane Chapman, who had started spending clip successful Virginia aft his woman died successful 2019.

Another amusement progressive 1 of Chapman’s daughters. It featured her, Sam and a radical of young activists who associated themselves with Black Lives Matter, protesting extracurricular the office of the Augusta County Sheriff — the aforesaid sheriff who had antecedently investigated Donovan and Moore, and who the mates has been publically battling with for years done lawsuits and connected societal media.

The protestation amusement besides went to Illinois to picket extracurricular the location of the president of RLI Insurance — the aforesaid security institution that won a $5.7 cardinal lawsuit against Nexus for unpaid bonds. (After losing an appeal, Nexus has yet to wage each it owes.)

Then came advertisements for shows called “Parkland: My Side of the Story” and “Being Zachary Cruz.” One preview showed Zach skateboarding arsenic Donovan gave an impassioned voice-over astir him. The show’s logo featured Zach encircled by pictures of the couple.

“There’s nary secrets successful our household,” Moore is filmed saying successful another preview. “A batch of radical would accidental it’s dysfunctional, it’s strange, but truthful are each the radical who unrecorded successful our house.”

The task ne'er seemed to afloat launch. The website for TV Unleashed remains “under construction.”

Meanwhile, the mates was becoming more progressive successful a substance that would soon beryllium connected TVs everywhere: Nikolas Cruz’s decease punishment sentencing trial.

Records of jailhouse calls amusement that aft moving to Virginia, Zach astir ne'er held video visits with his member without Donovan oregon Moore present. Eventually, Moore started visiting alone. By 2022, the 2 were talking astir each day.

Moore sent thousands of dollars to the shooter’s commissary and bought him formal apparel to deterioration to court. He showed up to ticker assemblage enactment with a information defender by his broadside and gave an interrogation to the section news. He announced connected Facebook that helium was going to beryllium called arsenic a witnesser successful the case.

“I ne'er genuinely understood what it genuinely meant to hatred the misdeed and emotion the sinner until now,” Moore wrote.

In astir each call, records show, Cruz wanted to cognize wherever Zach was. When, helium asked, could helium speech to his brother?

The caller said his sanction was Zachary Cruz. He was inquiring astir the wealth helium was entitled to person from his mother’s beingness security policy.

“Do you cognize however they message retired the payment?” the caller asked the security institution representative, according to constabulary records. He asked that the cheque beryllium overnighted to him via Fedex.

Two checks were mailed retired the adjacent day, Aug. 7, 2019, constabulary records show. One was for $207.17. The different was for $426,553.30.

Police accidental the caller was not Zach. An FBI investigation, which was aboriginal described by the Augusta County Sheriff’s Department successful hunt warrant affidavits, concluded the caller was Timothy Shipe, a vice president astatine Nexus. Shipe, who was aboriginal arrested alongside Donovan and Moore, had been the 1 to archer a Florida justice successful 2018 that helium would beryllium personally liable for providing Zach with a attraction job.

“The allegations against maine are each mendacious and volition beryllium disposed of during trial,” Shipe said successful a statement. "My lone anticipation is that radical volition fto Zach unrecorded his beingness post-Parkland trial.”

The checks, the hunt warrant affidavit said, were deposited into a associated checking relationship belonging to some Zach and Moore. The relationship had been opened aft nationalist defenders learned astir the beingness of a beingness security argumentation and disclosed successful tribunal however ample the payout was expected to be. Police accidental the time aft the inheritance made the news, Donovan called MetLife to inquire astir the money.

The fractional that belonged to the shooter would apt beryllium tied up successful the lawsuits filed by families of the victims. But Zach was entitled to much than $426,000. Overnight, helium had gone from destitute and babelike to having the wealth to bargain a location and a car, oregon to kick-start his imagination of owning his ain skate shop.

But 4 days aft the checks were deposited, constabulary records show, idiosyncratic logged into the shared slope relationship from Moore and Donovan’s location code and withdrew $300,000. The adjacent day, idiosyncratic logged into the relationship from the Nexus Services headquarters, and removed different $100,000.

The archetypal withdrawal, police allege, was utilized to wage the Internal Revenue Service.

It is unclear if Moore was already alert that helium was nether scrutiny for not paying payroll taxes. In 2021, helium was charged with taxation fraud by the Justice Department for allegedly failing to wage the IRS much than $1.5 million. He has pleaded not guilty.

Court filings show that successful caller years, Nexus has suffered large drops successful revenue, has been ordered to wage millions from lawsuits and class-action settlements and has endured what their lawyers described arsenic “crippling, multimillion dollar expenses that were not anticipated.”

The $100,000 that remained from Zach’s money, the hunt warrant affidavit states, went to recognition paper bills and car payments linked to a BMW and a Ferrari.

By January 2021, idiosyncratic had learned astir the transactions. This person, whom instrumentality enforcement has not named, alerted Shenandoah Valley Social Services, which investigates allegations of maltreatment of children and susceptible adults successful the community.

According to a petition filed by the bureau and obtained by The Post, the tipster reported that Zach was not alert that his wealth had been spent. The idiosyncratic claimed that Zach had intelligence wellness challenges, was not capable to negociate his ain finances and besides referred to him arsenic “mentally retarded,” a word wide considered to beryllium a slur toward radical with developmental and learning disabilities. Moore and Donovan aboriginal expressed outrage astir the violative word and said Zach is wholly competent.

Under Virginia law, erstwhile an Adult Protective Services portion receives a tip, it is required to statesman an probe wrong 24 hours, and to effort to marque face-to-face interaction with the imaginable unfortunate wrong 7 days.

“The instrumentality places fiscal exploitation successful the aforesaid class of concerns arsenic carnal maltreatment oregon neglect,” said Stephen Strosnider, an lawyer for the bureau who declined to remark connected the specifics of Zach’s case.

But the petition states that erstwhile a societal idiosyncratic tried to sojourn Zach astatine Donovan and Moore’s home, she was stopped by 1 of the equipped guards the mates pays to show their property. The societal idiosyncratic was not allowed into the house, the petition stated.

She near a missive explaining wherefore she wanted to talk to Zach.

Strosnider said it is uncommon for Shenandoah societal workers to beryllium denied entree to a imaginable unfortunate of exploitation.

The bureau took the substance to a judge, explaining successful its petition that the societal idiosyncratic was coordinating with an FBI investigator. The justice granted the request, penning that determination was bully origin to interrogation Zach.

In response, Donovan and Moore filed a suit against the societal worker.

They claimed she was progressive successful a conspiracy against them, on with what they acknowledged was an improbable radical of co-defendants. They sued the FBI agent, whom they said had gone “rogue.” They sued 1 of their erstwhile employees, whom Moore has referred to arsenic a “stalker,” alleging helium was involved. They sued Chapman, a.k.a. Dog the Bounty Hunter, whom they accused of being the tipster.

The lawsuit, which garnered tabloid headlines, claimed Chapman was exacting revenge for their determination to cancel “Dog Unleashed."

“Zachary Cruz is not the lone idiosyncratic that Donovan and Moore person purportedly taken vantage of," Chapman said successful a statement. “My household has fallen prey successful assorted ways to their scams arsenic well.”

The suit besides claimed Virginia was trying to spot Zach into a conservatorship, “much similar the 1 Brittany Spears has been forced to endure, wherever helium would person nary power implicit his life.” (The suit misspelled Spears’s archetypal name, Britney.)

Through it all, Zach shared small with the extracurricular satellite too videos of himself astatine the skate park.

Lawyer Mario Williams was hired by Donovan and Moore to correspond some Nexus and Zach. As societal services investigated, Williams took Zach speech and asked him if helium was comfy with Donovan and Moore managing his money. Williams said successful an interrogation that helium believed Zach was competent to marque his ain fiscal decisions. But helium had nary idea, helium said, that the inheritance was already gone.

“Zach did not attraction astatine each what they did with the money,” Williams said. “He said the words, ‘I spot them, and they tin bash what they want.’ ”

In September 2021, Zach was called to attest astir the substance successful beforehand of a national expansive jury. An excerpt of his grounds included successful constabulary records shows helium told the authoritative Moore had fixed him a batch of wealth implicit the years. But erstwhile asked if helium ever gave support for Moore and Donovan to usage his wealth to wage the IRS, Zach answered no.

“If the Department of Justice has Zach saying no, I ne'er gave them support to usage the wealth for that circumstantial happening ... that could beryllium a existent occupation for them,” Williams said.

Though Moore and Donovan were not charged astatine the time, the scrutiny of the inheritance wealth did not spell away. In April 2022, Florida prosecutors held a video-conference deposition with Zach successful mentation for the Parkland sentencing trial. He was required to reply their questions if helium was going to attest connected his brother’s behalf

The attorneys repeatedly asked Donovan to permission the room. He refused.

“Where is your money?” authoritative Jeff Marcus asked, referencing the inheritance.

“It’s, similar away. Like, I inactive have, like, wealth that’s expected to beryllium coming,” Zach said.

“So bash you person the wealth oregon is it inactive expected to beryllium coming? It’s present implicit 4 years later,” Marcus said. “Is it just to accidental you person nary thought wherever immoderate wealth is that you whitethorn person inherited?”

Before Zach could accidental more, his caller attorney, who was besides representing Moore, interrupted. She wouldn’t let him to reply questions astir the money. She wouldn’t let him to reply questions astir his beingness successful Virginia, oregon “TV Unleashed,” oregon Moore and Donovan’s felony records.

When Moore was deposed, the attorney, Amina Matheny-Willard, objected to akin questions.

“Are you making wealth disconnected of Zach Cruz’s notoriety of being Nikolas Cruz’s brother?” Marcus asked.

Moore didn’t answer.

Prosecutors took the contented to the judge, arguing that nether Florida law, witnesses are required to reply applicable questions during depositions. The justice agreed, issuing an bid commanding Moore and Zach to conscionable with the attorneys again and this time, “answer each questions asked of them."

It ne'er happened. On Sept. 14, a “statement from Zachary Cruz” was sent to the media announcing Zach would nary longer voluntarily attest successful the case.

“Broward prosecutors partnered with a racist Virginia Sheriff and a corrupt authoritative to effort to apprehension me, hunt my home, and taxable maine to a conservatorship,” the connection read.

It was filled with accusations of witnesser tampering and a informing to Broward County officials. When his brother’s lawsuit was over, Zach’s connection promised, he’d beryllium filing a lawsuit.

On a sunny day 2 weeks earlier the constabulary raid connected his location and 3 weeks earlier the verdict successful his brother’s case, Zach was successful the spot he’d ever alternatively be: a section skate park.

Approached by The Washington Post newsman who’d interviewed him extensively successful 2019, helium said helium did not cognize that she had been trying to scope him for months done Donovan and Moore.

There was a batch helium wanted to say, helium explained. He knew astir the connection that had been enactment out, which helium said helium gave input on, but Donovan wrote.

“I’m not bully with speeches oregon thing similar that,” Zach said.

He was connected his mode to bargain different caller skateboard, aft an off-balance landing had near a jagged ace betwixt his wheels. He’d been spending astir each of his clip here, perfecting his tricks, 1 facet of his beingness that was his to control. But lately, helium said, adjacent skating had been hard to ore on. Sometimes helium conscionable sat successful his car, watching his brother’s proceedings unfold. He work the quality coverage. He thought astir what radical accidental to him erstwhile they larn who his member is.

“As galore times arsenic your member changeable those people, that’s however galore times helium deserves to get shot,” helium said a person astatine the skate parkland had told him.

Everyone seemed to beryllium paying attraction again, reliving the horrific happening his member had done. But for the past 4½ years, Zach had ne'er stopped reliving it.

He said helium sometimes went weeks without sleeping. He broke his skateboards connected purpose. One nighttime successful 2020, helium broke a model and didn’t cognize why. He ended up hospitalized for his intelligence health, helium said.

“I ever think, what did that to me?” helium said. “And I deliberation it’s conscionable reasoning of my brother, each day.”

He knew that his brother wanted to speech to him much often. He knew the attorneys had wanted him to testify. He conscionable didn’t cognize what helium wanted to do.

“It sounds atrocious to say, but I don’t deliberation that helium deserves a chance, sometimes,” Zach said astir his brother. “That’s the happening with me. Sometimes I conscionable don’t cognize if I’m supporting the close side.”

All the while, helium said, Moore and Donovan person been guiding him.

When asked what had happened to his inheritance money, helium answered, “Really it’s similar Richard is helping maine with each of that. I’ve ne'er adjacent asked Richard astir the stuff, the plans we’ve already made. We already talked astir it but, I consciousness similar I forgot already. That benignant of accusation doesn’t instrumentality good with me. He tin archer me, ‘Oh we are going to bash this, this, this, this, and this.’ And I’ll hardly retrieve similar fractional of the list.”

He shifted his breached skateboard. He didn’t look similar the four-year-old Post photograph that had been sent to the media on with his statement.

He present had a aggregate look tattoos, including a greenish ribbon beneath his near eye, a awesome of intelligence wellness awareness. Tattooed crossed his knuckles were the words ‘LOST SOUL.’

Zach shared his telephone number. He wanted to get going to the skate shop. But past helium thought of thing other helium wanted to say.

“Another happening I tin archer you is, that amusement — ‘Being Zach Cruz’ — thing is happening with that. I’m not doing that,” helium said.

“I don’t privation to beryllium connected TV … particularly due to the fact that I don’t deliberation things are reasonably represented. I conscionable consciousness similar things consciousness scripted erstwhile there’s cameras and stuff,” helium said.

He searched for the close words.

“I don’t know, it’s hard. I consciousness similar there’s much to explain, but I don’t know,” helium said. “I don’t privation to marque a scene, that’s truly it. I’m gonna chopped it astatine that. I don’t privation to marque a scene.”

He drove off. Then helium texted Donovan.

The jury’s verdict had been delivered, but the sentencing for Nikolas Cruz was not over. Under Florida law, the families and survivors were allowed to instrumentality to the courtroom a last time. One by 1 this week, they stepped up to a podium, looked the shooter successful the oculus and told him conscionable however overmuch helium had taken from them. They spoke of the goodbyes they would ne'er get to accidental and the feelings of information they would ne'er get back. They called him a remorseless monster. A home terrorist. Pure evil.

Their anguish was streamed unrecorded connected YouTube.

As they spoke connected Tuesday, attorneys successful Virginia were moving connected a caller suit against Augusta County Sheriff Donald Smith, for the raid connected Donovan and Moore’s home. Also named successful the suit: the societal idiosyncratic who tried to cheque connected Zach. (The sheriff’s section and the societal services bureau declined to comment.)

The lawsuit, filed successful Zach’s sanction Wednesday, alleged misconduct, corruption and racism. It was accompanied by a 10-page “sworn affidavit of Zachary Paul Cruz.” It stated that Zach had been contiguous erstwhile Shipe asked for his inheritance cheque to beryllium overnighted to him.

“I told Mike I wanted to springiness the wealth to Nexus, and that I wanted to enactment a institution that was redeeming radical similar myself,” the affidavit said. “Richard and Mike person NEVER taken immoderate wealth from my relationship that I did not authorize.”

Zach, the sworn connection said, has received much than $460,000 from Moore and Donovan since helium moved to Virginia for “trips, cars, skating and different expenses.”

“To beryllium clear,” the affidavit from Zach concluded, “Richard and Mike person cared for maine erstwhile nary 1 other cared.”

In an email, Donovan said the determination to writer the sheriff was Zach’s. A Nexus lawyer besides forwarded a statement, attributed to Zach, which mostly repeated the assertions successful the lawsuit.

But erstwhile the lawyer checked to spot if Zach could do an interrogation Tuesday afternoon, she was told helium was busy.

Another subsister was taking the basal successful Florida, and Zach was watching.

Story editing by Lynda Robinson, photograph editing by Mark Miller, transcript editing by Thomas Heleba and Jordan Melendrez, plan by Michael Domine. Researcher Alice Crites contributed to this report.