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SALT LAKE CITY — A University of Utah football player was surprised to learn he was mentioned in a 140-page manifesto by the man accused of fatally shooting and stabbing six University of California, Santa Barbara students.
Lucky Radley, a senior running back, was first heartbroken to hear the deadly rampage occurred near Isla Vista, California, less than an hour from his hometown.
Heartbreak quickly turned to confusion and disturbance when he learned the suspect, Eliott Rodger, mentioned a childhood friendship with Radley in his manifesto before the killing spree.
"It's just a crazy feeling. I couldn't believe it. I still can't believe it," Radley told CNN.
Radley said their friendship was distant and brief when they were young. Rodger indicated Radley’s friendly, outgoing personality was the reason Rodger hated him.
"Lucky would later go to the same middle school as me, where he would become an object of extreme jealousy and hatred. Looking back, I can't believe I actually played with him as a friend in my father's neighborhood," Rodger wrote.
Radley said of Rodger, "He only spoke when he was spoken to. It wasn't normal how quiet he was."
Friday's rampage left six victims dead and 13 injured. Rodger died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head after a shootout with deputies.
Contributing: Nkoyo Iyamba
