A Florida father who made national headlines when he beat a man unconscious after finding him sexually abusing his 11-year-old son says he did what he had to do and would have killed the man if his son hadn't stopped him.
"My immediate feeling was to kill him, so he will never hurt anyone again," the father told NBC affiliate WESH.
The father, whose identity wasn't revealed to protect the victim, said he doesn't regret his reaction after he says he caught 18-year-old Raymond Frolander with his son last week.
Frolander was left bloodied and bruised, but the father said it could have been worse.
"My son saved Raymond. Raymond was motionless on our floor. I went to the kitchen to grab a butcher knife and my son stopped me. My son came in front of me and saved his attacker's life," he said.
Frolander remains behind bars without bond on a sexual battery charge. The father wasn't charged.
The father said he treated Frolander like his own son but claims the man left town after a sexual assault attempt three years ago that the victim never told anyone about. But Frolander recently returned, the father said.
He also said he thinks his son forgave Frolander, otherwise the beating would have been fatal.
"I think he must have because, he saved his life," the father said. ""It's going to be a long time before I can ever forgive that, if I can."
