A blonde maniac suspected of stabbing six people and killing another was a “freak” obsessed with working out and his appearance, neighbours told The Washington Post.
Jared Ravizza, the 26-year-old suspect who allegedly stabbed four girls at a theater over the weekend while they were watching the film “IF” and then stabbed two more at a McDonald’s, has started letting his trademark tight, tanned, blond hair flow during the pandemic, three former neighbors in Agawam, Massachusetts, told The Post on Monday.
“Jared’s a weirdo,” one neighbor said, adding that he and his father, psychologist Jason Ravizza, “are definitely weird.”
Jason is a mental health counselor with 35 years of experience working with children, teens and adults with a variety of issues including ADHD, PTSD, anxiety, depression, low self-worth, low self-esteem and autism. According to his online profile.
The man said the father and son duo were “very close”, were into fitness and enjoyed going on long walks and sunbathing together.
Both boys grew their hair long and dyed it blonde, and “eventually it became impossible to tell father and son apart from a distance,” the neighbor recalled.
The man recalled that the Ravizzas suddenly “left” the home of Jared’s mother, Kim, about two years ago, and that he hadn’t seen either of them since Jason mysteriously showed up at the house about a week ago.
And neighbours said the son was “aloof” and “never friendly” and would simply stare when they said hello.
A second neighbor told The Post that the father was a school counselor and would walk around the neighborhood wearing a weighted vest and lifting dumbbells, adding that “Jared and Jason were acting very strange.”
“There’s been a dramatic change since COVID,” the second neighbor said. “We don’t know what’s happened inside the house.”
The Ravizza son and father suddenly began to look like they should be living in California or Hawaii, not Massachusetts.
And a third neighbour said he hadn’t seen the pair – who he described as “good friends” – for about two years before Jason reappeared recently.
“Jared always had a tan,” a third man said. “He looked like a California surfer. A little orange. He obviously used something to get that tan.”
The man also said that his father had “advertised” Jared to a third neighbor, saying that he was a YouTuber and was dating a model.
A third neighbor noted in recent photos of Jared that he “looks a lot more feminine now.”
Jared has appeared to undergo an identity transition in recent months, describing himself as a “girlfriend” on Instagram and adopting a more feminine look.
Court documents also revealed that he had legally changed his name, removing his father’s surname.
The son was arrested in April by West Tilsbury police in Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, where he was living at the time, for allegedly attacking his father and vandalizing his home, The Boston Globe reported. The report cited court records..
According to the outlet, Jared was forced to undergo a mental health evaluation but was eventually released from a local hospital.
At the time of the attack, Jason reportedly told police that his son had “had a breakdown and attacked him.” The case has now moved to pretrial hearing, with Jason set to go to trial in November.
According to the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office, Jared is facing charges including assault with intent to murder and assault with a dangerous weapon.
Connecticut State Police also announced that the suspect is a murder suspect after a body was discovered in a home in Deep River, Connecticut, on Saturday afternoon.
Police issued a warning that the suspect was “armed and dangerous” and possessed a 10-inch knife, but later confirmed he had been arrested in the Bay State.
Authorities said Saturday’s attack, which was allegedly unprovoked, began when Jared attacked four girls, ages 9 to 17, at the Braintree AMC Theatre.
Authorities allege Jared then fled 30 miles in a Porsche SUV to Plymouth, Massachusetts, where he stabbed two McDonald’s employees at a rest stop on Interstate 3.
All of the victims were treated at local hospitals, but none of them were said to have life-threatening injuries.
Jared fled again, crashing his car into flames and totaling it in Sandwich, Massachusetts. Massachusetts police had been on the lookout for his vehicle but were in pursuit. He was taken into custody and treated for non-life-threatening injuries, authorities said.
Jared is scheduled to be arraigned in Plymouth District Court on Tuesday.
