ORLANDO, Fla. – In a TV interview airing Monday on the news magazine "Crime Watch Daily," the parents of Casey Anthony claim their daughter suffered from mental illness when their granddaughter, Caylee, vanished nearly a decade ago.
“Yes, I think Casey is mentally ill. I really do. I think Casey is mentally ill,” said her mother, Cindy Anthony. “She doesn't remember when she has seizures unless she knows she bit her tongue or something.”
Casey Anthony’s father, George, told host Chris Hansen that he’s been visited by his late granddaughter in the couple’s East Orange County home.
“I’ve seen her in the flesh. I’ve seen her,” said George Anthony.
“One time she woke me up in the morning, just tapping (on my head) with her little finger like she used to.”
Caylee vanished from her grandparents’ home in June 2008.
Her mother, Casey Anthony, was later arrested for the toddler’s murder after claiming a fictitious babysitter had kidnapped Caylee.
In 2011, a jury acquitted Casey Anthony of murder. During the trial, Casey Anthony’s defense team suggested the child accidentally drowned in the family’s backyard swimming pool.
Casey Anthony is living in the West PalmBeach area, but remains estranged from her parents.
“If Casey is watching this, what do you say to her,” Hansen asks Cindy Anthony in the interview.
“Casey, be true to yourself,” Cindy Anthony replied. “Start being honest with yourself. And own everything. Quit putting blame on everybody else.”
The full interview with George and Cindy Anthony on "Crime Watch Daily" airs Monday at 9 a.m. on News 6.