Mystery of family murdered at campsite after mom of ‘gunman’ says she ‘refuses’ to believe crucial evidence in case
THE mother of a suspected shooter who allegedly killed three members of one family at a campsite says she refuses to believe the news and disputes evidence from a witness.
Cecilia Sherwin has claimed that her son Anthony Sherwin, 23, was wearing different color clothing than the alleged shooter when he was last seen in the Iowa campsite where three Schmidt family relatives were found dead on Friday.
Anthony was found dead of an alleged self-inflicted gunshot wound five hours after the nine-year-old son of Tyler and Sarah Schmidt, both 42, ran looking for help.
Arlo Schmidt was the sole survivor of the shooting, but it is unclear where he was during the attack.
The young boy claimed that a shooter in black had gunned down his parents and six-year-old sister Lulu.
Cecilia told the that her family, from Nebraska, was camping when she heard yelling and two gunshots.
Read more in crime
The boy allegedly told Cecilia that a man wearing black had shot his family.
This didn't add up to what Cecilia thought she knew. She claimed Anthony was wearing green, not black.
The mother also disclosed that her family was traveling with a gun, but that it was located in a secure container.
Cecilia told the World-Herald, “We think [Anthony] might have sensed trouble and grabbed the gun for safety."
Most read in The Sun
“We refuse to believe the news. We are deeply saddened as he had so much to live for and gave us no indication that anything was wrong," she said.
Anthony had no criminal record and gave his family "no warning that he was planning anything of this sort," according to Cecilia.
"Anthony was not capable of this sort of violence," Cecilia said.
She continued: "I didn't think we had any tears left but we still find ourselves breaking down and care deeply for the little boy and the loss of his family."
The Sherwins have "cooperated fully with the police and investigative team from the get-go," Cecilia said.
They told police that Anthony was missing and that they feared he was killed by a different man, the one the boy described to Cecilia.
Another camper in the area, Felicia Coe, told that her boyfriend's teenage son saw an older couple looking for someone named Anthony, while he was out for a jog.
While the teenager was in the bathroom, the couple knocked on the door and asked, “Anthony, are you in there, buddy?”
Police have not said what type of gun was used in the murder of the Schmidts or if Anthony had a firearm permit.
The Department of Public Safety said that autopsies on the Schmidts are expected to occur over the weekend.
An autopsy of Sherwin will also be conducted by the state medical examiner.
Adam Morehouse, Sarah's brother, told The Sun in an exclusive interview, that the nine-year-old boy “was incredible and courageous throughout all of this."
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Read More on The US Sun
He said the boy "definitely has a stronger mind than the average nine-year-old in everything he does."
Morehouse told the that the family had no connection to the alleged shooter and that he believed it was a “completely random act.”
