In a shocking incident that left a quiet Long Island community reeling, a man killed four family members before taking his own life in a disturbing murder-suicide on Sunday August 25th, 2024. According to neighbors and police, the gunman was the adult son of a recently deceased 95-year-old woman, Theresa DeLucia. He was reportedly overcome with grief and anxiety about the sale of the family home where they had both lived for many years.
The incident unfolded in a small blue house on Wyoming Court in Syosset, where neighbors could hear the man’s anguished cries before he ultimately shot himself. Authorities say the man, who had struggled with mental health issues, killed his four victims inside the house and then turned the gun on himself on the front lawn.
Neighbor Wendy Paisner, who lives across the street, described the horrific scene. “It’s really sad,” she said. “His mother passed away, and I think that triggered him. They were selling the house, and he just couldn’t handle it.”
Paisner’s home security camera captured the tragic moment, which she described as deeply unsettling. “It’s real disturbing to hear. He was screaming, crying. And then you hear the gun… and that’s it,” she recounted. She turned the footage over to investigators.
The man, who had lived in the house his entire life, seemed to be struggling with the loss of his mother and the impending sale of their home. Paisner had spoken to him the day before the tragedy, offering kind words and reassurance, but he appeared distraught and overwhelmed. “He was a petrified person,” she said.
Authorities are investigating whether the shooting was triggered by a dispute over the family’s estate. Sources indicated that disagreements over the will may have contributed to the deadly outcome. “It looks like someone wasn’t happy with the will,” a law enforcement source revealed.
Police have yet to officially identify the shooter or the four victims, but Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder suggested that family tensions may have escalated over the sale of the house, which the late matriarch’s relatives had begun preparing to sell.
Neighbors expressed shock at the violence that erupted in their typically peaceful, middle- to upper-class neighborhood, home to professionals such as lawyers, doctors, and business owners. “It’s shocking anywhere, but especially here. We’re not used to this kind of thing happening,” said banker Corey Margulefsky, who lives nearby. “It sounds like a dispute over money… I guess somebody was cut out of the will.”
The bodies of the victims were removed from the home late Sunday evening.
Another neighbor, who chose to remain anonymous, described the family as somewhat isolated, saying he rarely saw them. Despite this, Paisner noted that the alleged shooter had become more friendly in recent years, occasionally helping neighbors with mechanical work. “He wasn’t always very friendly,” she said. “But recently, he seemed to have turned a corner.”
This tragic incident serves as a grim reminder of the potential consequences when grief, mental health issues, and family conflicts intersect in devastating ways.