The Zimmermans really know how to party on another person's tab.
According to a profile in the October issue of GQ magazine, George Zimmerman and his brother, Robert Jr.—who told the magazine that before George's fatal 2012 shooting of unarmed teen Trayvon Martin, "he was the family f—kup"—racked up $3,600 in comped fees in February at Miami's Ritz-Carlton for an interview with CNN.
The two reportedly expensed a 10-person dinner, had several spa services, cleaned out the mini bar and even got Mercedes-Benz cologne from the gift shop. CNN initially refused to pay the bill but eventually caved after Robert locked himself in a hotel room getting drunk on beer, GQ reported. The hotel threatened to call the police. Robert claimed some medical illness and cried to his mother, "I can’t get warm. I just can’t get warm," according to the report. Eventually a CNN producer calmed Robert down.
"You and your brother are evil!" another CNN producer reportedly screamed at Robert, who envisioned George becoming a reality-TV star of sorts once he was acquitted of murder.
GQ reports that George refused to do the interview with the magazine unless he was given a one-week hotel stay.
The interview brings readers up-to-date on all the interworkings of the Zimmerman family since the shooting.
According to the magazine, the Zimmermans—brothers George and Robert, sister Grace, and parents Bob and Gladys—believe themselves to be the victims of the shooting, noting how they have trouble traveling and how George has been unable to work. George currently has some $2.5 million in debt and legal fees, and his parents claim that they have had to leave their home and find safety in hotels. As a result they have experienced financial hardship, claiming that they are currently living in a safe house in Florida. Robert believes that George has suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder since the shooting.
"I am sure there are people, you know, some young kid that has nothing going for him, but he's able to get a pistol, wants to make a name for himself. 'Maybe I'll kill one of the Zimmermans. Maybe George, maybe one of his family members. I'll be famous.' You know? That happens," he told GQ.
"And that's what worries me," Bob Zimmerman told GQ.
Read more at GQ magazine.