Five people died in an apparent murder-suicide on Sunday, Aug. 25, at a Long Island, N.Y., home, just moments before they were to meet with a realtor to talk about selling the family house, authorities said.
The alleged gunman, Joseph DeLucia, Jr., 59, was distraught about the recent death of his 95-year-old mother and that the Syosset home where he lived with her was going to be sold, Nassau County Police Department Captain Stephen Fitzpatrick said at a press conference viewed on Monday, Aug. 26.
“The perception of Joseph Jr. was that he was being cut out of the will and was going to be displaced without a place to go,” Fitzpatrick explained.
“Because of that perception,” DeLucia killed his family, he continued, noting how DeLucia had “past mental issues, psychological issues that were reported to us that we have not confirmed.”
Theresa DeLucia, 95, died on Aug. 19, and her funeral was on Aug. 23.
“Three days later this incident occurred,” Fitzpatrick said during the conference.
On Sunday, just before noon, the man’s siblings and niece gathered at the house to meet with a realtor, he noted.
“They brought Starbucks and they assembled in the den area,” he said. “The brother (DeLucia) stayed behind.”
While they were waiting for the realtor, DeLucia “decided that day to get a loaded, Mossberg shotgun, 12 gauge, approached them in the rear area of the house, and from the kitchen, fired 12 shots, striking all four of them multiple times,” Fitzpatrick recalled.
Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said this was one of the most “horrific” crime scenes he had ever seen during the conference.
The victims were identified as Joanne Kearns, 69, of Tampa, Fla.; Frank DeLucia, 64, of Durham, N.C.; Tina Hammond, 64, of East Patchogue, N.Y.; and her daughter, Victoria Hammond, 30, also of East Patchogue.
Officers who responded to a report about shots fired at the home on Wyoming Avenue found DeLucia on the front lawn, Fitzpatrick said.
“He then took the weapon, went out to the front lawn, was shouting indiscriminately about what happened,” he said. “A neighbor heard him doing this, called 911, and that was our 911 caller. He then fired a self-inflicted shot to the chest and killed himself.”
All five victims were pronounced deceased at the scene by a Nassau County Police Medic, the department said in a statement.
Police were called to the home once before in 2022 for a wellcheck of DeLucia, Fitzgerald said.
At that time, though, DeLucia “was not displaying any signs that he was dangerous to himself or others,” and could not be taken to the hospital “against his will” for a psychiatric evaluation, he said.
At the same time, Ryder said this is “unconfirmed, but neighbors have reported that (DeLucia) had made statements in the past that if you hear gunshots, don’t bother calling 911 because it will be too late.”
Surviving family members told police that DeLucia was not going to be left out of the will, NBC New York reported.
“If anybody has somebody that they think has issues, you should be calling us,” Fitzpatrick said. “We’re not saying this incident could have been averted, but maybe it could have.”
The pump-action shotgun DeLucia used was legally possessed, he explained.
“But if he was reported to be mentally unstable, this may be illegal for him to possess,” Fitzpatrick noted.
