Austin Harrouff remains hospitalized in critical condition after the August 15 murders of John Stevens and Michelle Mishcon, when police discovered him perched on the body of 59-year-old Stevens, whose face and chest he was tearing at with his teeth. Harrouff’s organs are reportedly shutting down due to chemicals he may have consumed at the scene of the murder, as his liver is malfunctioning and he is said to have fluid in his lungs and a bleeding esophagus. If and when he wakes up, the 19-year-old will be charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder.
While Harrouff’s fate hangs in the balance, his dentist father, Dr. Wade Harrouff, made an appearance on Dr. Phil Thursday to piece together some answers and begin to make amends for his son’s alleged crimes. When asked what he would say to the families of the slain couple, the elder Harrouff broke down in tears. “This is the worst thing I could ever think of,” he told Dr. Phil. “This is the biggest nightmare I could ever even dream of.” Harrouff apologized through sobs, insisting that his son is a good person, claiming, “He would never knowingly do something like that.”
Later in the episode, Harrouff provided additional details as to the timeline on the night of the murders, which involved chugging vegetable oil, apparently.
Dr Harrouff said his son had been eating with him and his daughter in Duffy’s restaurant in Jupiter, Florida, when he got angry and left. From there Austin made his way to his mother Mina’s house, according to a spokesman for the Dr Phil show, where he attempted to drink the oil.
His mother forced him to mix with with Parmesan cheese before he wolfed that down, after which he left. It is then thought that Austin made his way back to the restaurant, before leaving for a second time and attempting to walk back to his father’s house.
Although toxicology reports have not yet come back which could potentially turn up evidence of flakka or bath salts, Harrouff thinks mental illness is to blame for his son’s crimes.
(Via Daily Mail)