Amanda “Mandy” Karolkiewicz’s father, Gary Anderson, spoke out after she was murdered and insisted he “still loves” her husband, Kristopher Karolkiewicz, after he killed her and their six kids in an apparent murder-suicide.
“I love my daughter Mandy, and I loved those six children. In a way, I still love Kris,” Anderson told The Detroit News in an interview published on Friday, July 31.
Anderson added that he was still struggling “to understand the why.”
“I’m sure that will come out in the future. I have no idea why,” he said. “Speculation is what I have a disdain for. It’s very clear that he did what he did.”
Us previously reported that Kristopher, 47, shot and killed Mandy, 39, and their six kids on July 24 before he set their Michigan home on fire.
Two years before the killings, Mandy had opened up about their marital problems in a series of Reddit threads. After she explained that Kristopher had previously cheated on her with an intern, she discussed how hard it was to move on from the situation.
Following the tragedy, several of Mandy’s family members have shared insight into who she was as a person in heartfelt tributes.
Mandy’s mom, Becky Lawwill, and stepdad, Steve Lawwill, told Fox 17 that their daughter, who worked as a substitute teacher, “was a kind and devoted soul who loved her family and her students.”
“We treasured every moment we had with her and her six children, and words cannot adequately express our devastation,” they told the outlet. “We pray for God’s peace and comfort as we grieve their deaths and honor their lives.”
Meanwhile, her cousin Emily Jones told WZZM 13 that Mandy was “the sweetest, funniest person that you could ever meet” and that she was “a light in her community, a light in her family’s lives.”
Jones continued to discuss Mandy on the family’s GoFundMe page, where she addressed her cousin’s comments on Reddit.
“Mandy, like most people, contained multitudes. She was observant, empathetic, and inquisitive. We can all agree that she enjoyed the community built around people working together for the common good,” she wrote on behalf of their family. “In her absence, we should assign her character based on these attributes instead of a snapshot of her life, a Reddit post, or assumptions.”
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential support.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
