Nikolas Cruz writes love letters to pen pal from jail as he faces death penalty in Parkland shooting

Love letters written by Nikolas Cruz to a female pen pal in the United Kingdom have offered a unique view into the mind of the Parkland shooter as his sits behind bars in a Florida prison. 

The South Florida Sun Sentinel obtained 46 pages of Cruz’s handwritten notes from the Broward State Attorney’s Office, in which the now-20-year-old mass murderer reveals the life he wishes he could build for himself.

Most of the dreams detailed in Cruz’s notes, including his desire to get married and raise a family, will likely never come to fruition as he stands trial for shooting dead 17 people in cold blood at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School on February 14, 2018. 

Cruz is facing a minimum of life in prison without parole, and the Florida state attorney is seeking the death penalty. 

In his letters, which have been introduced as evidence in the case against him, Cruz holds on to hope that he may one day be released from jail.  

Love letters written by Nikolas Cruz to a female pen pal in the United Kingdom have offered a unique view into the mind of the Parkland shooter as his sits behind bars in a Florida prison

The South Florida Sun Sentinel published 46 pages of Cruz's handwritten from the Broward State Attorney's Office on Monday. In the letters addressed to Miley, his pen pal, the now-20-year-old mass murderer reveals the life he wishes he could build for himself

The South Florida Sun Sentinel published 46 pages of Cruz’s handwritten from the Broward State Attorney’s Office on Monday. In the letters addressed to Miley, his pen pal, the now-20-year-old mass murderer reveals the life he wishes he could build for himself

Cruz's letters are riddled with spelling errors and covered in childish drawings. The lifelong special education student is believed to fall on the autism spectrum

Cruz’s letters are riddled with spelling errors and covered in childish drawings. The lifelong special education student is believed to fall on the autism spectrum

In the letter above, Cruz tells Miley: 'I want you to know me like no one else has'

In the letter above, Cruz tells Miley: ‘I want you to know me like no one else has’

Nowhere in the correspondence does the Cruz specifically mention his horrific Valentines Day massacre, writing at one point that talking about it ‘would be a bad idea’.

However, in one of letter he recommends that his pen pal listen to the song Pumped Up Kicks by Foster the People, which is about a school shooting.  

He also writes that if he had kids he would want to name the sons after guns – Kalashnikov, Makarov and Remington – and would let his wife name any daughters.  

‘I really want kids. I think of it all the time, you know the joy they bring,’ he writes. 

The letters by Cruz, a lifelong special education student who experts say likely falls on the autism spectrum, are riddled with spelling errors and childish drawings. 

The public defender’s office has reportedly not ruled out using Cruz’s developmental disabilities to keep him off death row, according to a representative.  

Nowhere in the letters does Cruz specifically mention the Parkland shooting which killed 17

Nowhere in the letters does Cruz specifically mention the Parkland shooting which killed 17 

In one letter he recommends that his pen pall listen to Pumped Up Kicks by Foster the People, a song about a school shooting

In one letter he recommends that his pen pall listen to Pumped Up Kicks by Foster the People, a song about a school shooting

In a letter from December 31, 2018, Cruz asked Miley about whether he wanted children. He then said he would want to name his three sons after guns - Kalashnikov, Makarov and Remington - and would let his wife name any daughters

In a letter from December 31, 2018, Cruz asked Miley about whether he wanted children. He then said he would want to name his three sons after guns – Kalashnikov, Makarov and Remington – and would let his wife name any daughters

The letters are addressed to Miley, one of Cruz’s cyber-supporters in the United Kingdom, and her brother Liam. 

In the wake of the shooting, Miley helped form a Facebook group called ‘The First Victim’, a reference to Cruz. 

None of Miley or Liam’s responses to Cruz were included in the letters released this week, which are dated from mid-October 2018 to mid-November.

Cruz writes to Miley inviting her to his trial, and suggests that when she moves to Florida she should get a concealed weapons license ’cause it’s dangerous hear [sic]’. 

‘I also was wondering if you’d be interested in marriage when the time’s comes. It won’t be for a long time, but would you be interested?’ he asks. 

‘I feel like we make a great family together. With lots of kids. I imagine it every day. That’s what’s keeping me strong.’

In a letter to Liam, Cruz writes: ‘Since I am into your sister maybe we can go on a double date.’ 

He also talks about spending time in the Everglades, telling one of the pen pals: ‘I wish you could experience it with me. Maybe one day.’

Cruz also expresses his desire to have children with Miley, and to name them after guns

Cruz also expresses his desire to have children with Miley, and to name them after guns

One letter says: 'Warning Classified Information' followed by several crude emoticon doodles

One letter says: ‘Warning Classified Information’ followed by several crude emoticon doodles

Cruz on multiple occasions expresses his longing for fresh air, writing at one point: ‘I hate it hear [sic]. I wish I could leave and move to the mountains and live alone with some equipment that allow me to live off the land. 

‘I hope one day I’ll be able to do that, but time will tell.’

Mulling over what the future holds for him in another letter, Cruz writes: ‘I wish life for me could have been different but it’s not. And a part of me is wishing it ends. End with the death [penalty], letting someone inject me with longlast sleep. 

‘Its kind of what I want but I’m unsure of myself so I’m just letting people save me from myself, saving me from something that I can never return from.’  

He later adds: ‘I don’t know what’s wrong with me, maybe I should get the death penalty. IDK [I don’t know], I just want love….’

‘I hope you can understand it’s because of my mother. I feel like I’ll never be loved and I’ll die alone.’

In a letter from November 1, 2018, Cruz mentions the mass shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh where eight people were killed.  

‘I put my heart out to these victims and to the shooter because I believe they need all the support they can get,’ he writes.

The full compilation of letters can be read below. 

 

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk