Man suspected in Water Mill killing of Brooklyn artist found dead

Long Island Morning Edition

A man suspected of killing a Brooklyn artist at a Water Mill resort was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound Tuesday night at his home in Pennsylvania, Suffolk police said.

John Asbury reports in NEWSDAY that Thomas Gannon, 56, of Honesdale, Pennsylvania, was a suspect in the death of Sabina Rosas, 33, of Brooklyn, at the Shou Sugi Ban House in Water Mill, Suffolk police said, without commenting on how he was identified as a suspect.

A family friend, Ryder Iwata, released a statement on behalf of the family yesterday following news of Gannon's death.

"This news has left our family with a mix of sorrow and frustration. While we are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of life, we also feel a profound sense of injustice," the statement read. "Sabina deserves justice, and we were seeking accountability for her death. The loss of the suspect means we will never hear the truth about what happened to her. This outcome has robbed us of the opportunity to find closure through the legal process."

Liz Phillips, Rosas' former professor at Purchase College, said Rosas had been dating Gannon, who had been funding her art projects and travel and accompanying her.

Gannon had been a contractor and business owner who specialized in tile and flooring and worked on building castle-like structures in Pennsylvania. His former business partner, Matthew Dodson, said he bought him out of the company last year and lost touch with Gannon.

Rosas had been staying as an overnight guest at the Water Mill resort and spa when her body was discovered by a resort staff member. The spa, where rooms start at $1,000 a night, has not commented on the death and police would not comment on whether Gannon was staying there with her. Born in Tajikistan, Rosas was also known as Sabina Khorramdel. She came to the United States in 2009 and graduated from Purchase College in 2020 with a bachelor's degree in new media, later displaying her art in New York City.

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In a branching discussion of the 2025 proposed budget during last week’s work session, Riverhead Town Board members defended increases to elected officials’ salaries, discussed perceived mistakes in past budgets and explored the possibility of state legislation to allow the town to use recreation fees charged to residential developers for repairs and maintenance at town parks. Alek Lewis reports on Riverheadlocal.com that board members showed no appetite for amending the budget plan put forward by Riverhead Town Supervisor Tim Hubbard last month. A public hearing regarding the budget proposal during the Town Board’s November 7 meeting, is scheduled for next Thursday at 2 p.m. The 2025 preliminary budget proposes increasing the salaries of elected officials, including the supervisor and council members. The decision to increase their salaries, while at the same time proposing a 7.92% increase to the town-wide tax levy — a record high since the 2% tax levy cap was imposed by the state in 2012 — has faced community criticism. Riverhead Town Board members’ salaries haven’t increased in more than a decade. The salary paid to a town supervisor — currently $115,148 per year — last increased in 2008. The salary paid to council members, by law a part-time position, is currently $48,955 per year; it last increased in 2012.

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Election Day 2024 is 5 days away on Tuesday, November 5th. However, early voting in New York State is underway now through Sunday, Nov. 3.

Voters registered in Suffolk County can vote at any one of the 28 early voting sites in the county.

A full list of early voting sites is available at www.suffolkvotes.com

Hours of early voting today and Friday are 12 Noon to 8 p.m. and this coming Saturday and Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. No voting next Monday.

If you vote on Election Day, next Tuesday; Nov. 5 (when the polls are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.), you can only vote at your designated polling place (you can find your regular polling place at voterlookup.elections.ny.gov)

Early voting polling places today thru Sunday on the East End include St. Marks Episcopal Church at 40 Main Street in Westhampton Beach, Riverhead Town Hall at 4 West Second Street, The Gym at Stony Brook Southampton College at 70 Tuckahoe Road in Southampton, the Southold Town Recreation Center at 970 Peconic Lane in Peconic, the Shelter Island Youth Recreation Center at 1 Bateman Road on Shelter Island and Windmill Village at 219 Accabonac Road in East Hampton.

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said this week that the Shinnecock Nation has applied for but not yet received two preconstruction permits for a gas station on a portion of its Westwoods property in Hampton Bays, and that the federal agency has requested design documents for the installation of the underground storage tanks. Additionally, the agency has informed the tribe that it wants its staff to observe the installation of the tanks.

Michael Wright reports on 27east.com that a spokesman for the EPA said this past week that the tribe has applied for two permits: a New Source Review permit under the Clean Air Act, and a federal Nation Pollution Discharge Elimination System permit under the Clean Water Act. The spokesman said that the agency is working with representatives of the tribe and its contractor on the design and inspection requirements for the facility but indicated that neither permit has yet been issued. The nation submitted a “notification form” for the two underground storage tanks on October 16, the day that two more than 50-foot-long tanks and truckloads of associated piping were delivered to the Westwoods property. Shinnecock Council Chairwoman Lisa Goree said this week that the tribe does not plan to install the underground tanks until it has the permits from the EPA.

Meanwhile, a group of neighbors of the Westwoods property this week said they have hired an attorney and plan to pursue legal action to halt the construction of the gas station after being frustrated by the Town of Southampton’s inaction on the matter.

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Earlier this month two more than 50-foot-long tanks and truckloads of associated piping were delivered to the Shinnecock Nation’s Westwoods property in Hampton Bays where the tribe is constructing a gas station and service plaza. Shinnecock Council Chairwoman Lisa Goree said this week that the tribe does not plan to install the underground tanks until it has the permits from the EPA.

Meanwhile, Michael Wright reports on 27east.com that a group of neighbors of the Westwoods property this week said they have hired an attorney and plan to pursue legal action to halt the construction of the gas station after being frustrated by the Town of Southampton’s inaction on the matter. The town issued a stop-work order for the project, but it was ignored by the tribe and its contractors. The town has said that as a sovereign nation, taking further legal action against the tribe is complex and fraught with getting bogged down in costly, yearslong litigation. On Monday night at a meeting of the Hampton Bays Civic Association, Diana Adams said, “If they own the land as reservation, or sometimes called aboriginal, they have broad rights — they have a lot of rights on the reservation property,” she said. “But if they own the land in fee simple, then local laws apply. If they came to me and asked me to sell them my house, they can’t just put up a hotel.” The tribe has said it expects the gas station to be completed and ready for operation by spring 2025. They have called on the state to allow them to build an exit onto Sunrise Highway so that the gas station can be accessed other than via Newtown Road, a narrow and winding back road with hundreds of homes. Some residents of the hamlet have said they should work with the tribe to pressure the state DOT to allow the ramp, for the sake of staving off a traffic onslaught. But others have worried that allowing the ramp would just be an avenue to a new flood of traffic from the highway.

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The poor quality of cellphone service is a common summertime complaint in the heart of Sag Harbor. But if the Village Board signs off on a proposal next month to increase the number of Wi-Fi receivers on village streets, dropped calls and the inability to book a reservation at a local restaurant online may become a thing of the past.

Stephen J. Kotz reports on 27east.com that Thomas Iden, a contractor with Saunders Broadcasting Corp., which owns Hamptons.com, has already discussed the proposal with Sag Harbor Village Mayor Tom Gardella and will make his pitch when the full board meets on Tuesday, November 12. Under the proposal, Saunders, owned by Andrew Saunders of Saunders and Associates real estate, will cover the cost of making the upgrades, in exchange for the right to install street cameras in choice locations that it will stream on Hamptons.com. Iden said the initial goal is to add five new access points at key locations, including Long Wharf, Marine Park, Havens Beach and eventually John Steinbeck Waterfront Park and Windmill Beach. More access points could be added in the future, and additional cameras could potentially be placed at Windmill Beach and at Havens Beach, he said.

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Records show a state program that provides in-home services for the elderly such as personal care assistance and meals has a backlog of nearly 16,400 requests for services, up 2% in the past year. Data indicates the picture is somewhat better on Long Island, where the waitlist dipped 20% since 2023, but still has more than 1,200 unfilled requests. Advocates for the elderly said the program is critical when it comes to keeping seniors in their homes, while helping families avoid paying out-of-pocket for services or moving loved ones to nursing homes. Robert Brodsky reports in NEWSDAY that an increasing number of elderly New Yorkers are waiting for services such as home delivered meals, personal care assistance and transportation, largely due to what advocacy groups representing seniors contend is insufficient statewide funding that is forcing some of the vulnerable population into hospitals, nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.

The total number of seniors on the backlogged Expanded In-home Services (EISEP) waitlist doesn't exactly match the number of requests because some people are waiting for multiple services, according to elder advocates involved with the program. Closing the backlog will cost $35.6 million, Greg Olsen, who heads the New York State Office for the Aging, said yesterday.

Olsen said EISEP is critical to keeping some seniors in their homes, while helping families avoid paying out-of-pocket for private services or placing their loved ones in more expensive nursing homes — which cost an average of $100,000 annually.

Also, closing the waitlist would save taxpayers an estimated $237 million in annual Medicaid costs, according to AARP officials.

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Long Island Morning Edition is part of Your Election 2024, a special collection of programs, series, and resources from The WNET Group to illuminate election issues on-air, online, and on YouTube leading into the November 5th elections. Find more at wliw.org/yourelection2024.