Son Confesses Mercy Killings of Elderly Parents in New York

Lorenz Kraus, 53, admitted in a televised interview that he killed his parents, Franz and Theresia Kraus, whose remains were found buried in the backyard of their Albany home after a multi‑agency probe that began with a Social Security welfare check and a fraud investigation. He told CBS6 anchor Greg Floyd he choked his father and strangled his mother in 2017, later burying them on the property, and described the killings as a form of “mercy” because he was concerned about their suffering. Investigators unearthed two sets of remains during excavations begun Sept. 23–24, although officials said forensic confirmation is still pending, and Kraus was arrested outside the news station after the interview. He has pleaded not guilty to charges including second‑degree murder and concealment of a corpse. The case drew national attention in part because Kraus, a marginal political figure who ran an obscure 2020 presidential campaign and promoted extremist, antisemitic views online, inserted political commentary into the interview.