A Phoenix man said he decided to destroy his four AR-15 assault rifles worth as much as $4,000 after one was used in the fatal Florida school shooting that left 17 dead.

'I don't think my weapons would ever be used to kill people, but it's the point, it's that I'm willing, as a gun owner, to sacrifice being able to own something like that for the greater good of society,' Aaron LaRoque told KTAR News 92.3 FM.

LaRoque said that after he saw a New York man do the same with his weapons over the weekend, he was inspired to talk to his family.

'To me, the whole point is to say: "I don't agree with these anymore - people owning these assault weapons" and that's what they are: assault weapons,' LaRoque said.

'AR-15s seem to be meant for killing people and we don't want a part of that.

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Aaron LaRoque, of Phoenix, Arizona (pictured), said he destroyed his AR-15 assault riles after the deadly mass shooting at a Parkland, Florida, high school last week left 17 dead

LaRoque (pictured, left, with his wife) said that after he saw a New York man do the same with his weapons over the weekend, he was inspired to talk to his family

'I basically decided after conversations with my family and my son (pictured) that we're not going to own these types of weapons,' he told CBS . 'These aren't necessary. We have other weapons for hunting and protecting the home. These were strictly for us, for target shooting'

'I talked to my son and my wife about it because my son really likes them,' LaRoque said. 'We love shooting them. [My son has] bought two of them with his own money.

'After I showed him the video and talked to him about it, he agreed. He said: 'Let's cut them up'.'

Despite similar weapons used in multiple mass shootings, LaRoque hadn't thought about giving them up until the fatalities at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

'I basically decided after conversations with my family and my son that we're not going to own these types of weapons,' he told CBS 5.

'These aren't necessary. We have other weapons for hunting and protecting the home. These were strictly for us, for target shooting.

'And unfortunately too many people are using these type of weapons to kill people, and a lot of people.'

LaRoque said that there are other firearms he owns, including hunting rifles (pictured) and handguns, but he said there seemed to be a stark difference between them and his AR-15s

LaRoque said he chose to cut the rifles up (pictured) rather than sell them or turn them over to police because the weapons could eventually fall into the wrong hands

'They serve a purpose - home protection or hunting and we thought about. AR-15s seem to be meant for killing people and we don't want a part of that,' Laroque (pictured left, with wife) said

LaRoque said that there are other firearms he owns, including hunting rifles and handguns, but he said there seemed to be a stark difference between them and his AR-15s.

'They serve a purpose - home protection or hunting and we thought about it,' he said.

Just like the New York man, he said he chose to cut them up rather than sell them or turn them over to police because the weapons could eventually fall into the wrong hands.