Son Who Fatally Stabbed Father On Zoom Arraigned: DA

AMITYVILLE, NY — An Amityville man was arraigned on Friday after fatally stabbing his father while he was on a Zoom video conference with several people this week, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Timothy D. Sini. On Thursday, 72-year-old Dwight Powers, of Amityville, was in a meeting on Zoom with 20 other participants when his son, 32-year-old Thomas Scully-Powers, entered the room and began beating him, the DA said.

Scully-Powers then left the room and returned with a knife, at which point one of the other participants called 911, the DA said. He then allegedly stabbed Powers multiple times in his back, neck and torso with several different knives, causing his death, the DA said.

"This is a shocking and disturbing case," Sini said. "By the defendant’s own admissions, he brutally stabbed his own father repeatedly until he was certain he was dead. The investigation into this horrific murder is still ongoing, but rest assured we will obtain justice for the victim."

When Suffolk police arrived at the apartment, which was delayed by 15 to 20 minutes due to the fact that the participants did not know exactly where Powers lived, Scully-Powers allegedly jumped out of a window on the second story of the home and fled on foot, according to the DA.

He ran across Route 110 into a deli, where he allegedly took several bottles of Dr. Pepper and tried to use them to wash the blood off of his body, the DA said. He was then caught by Amityville Village Police officers within blocks of the deli, near the intersection of Ketcham Avenue and Cedar Street, at 12:57 p.m., were he was arrested, Sini said. He was charged with second degree murder.

After his arrest, Scully-Powers allegedly admitted to police that he stabbed his father 15 times and used several different knives because the blades kept bending, the DA said. An examination by the Suffolk County Office of the Medical Examiner determined that the victim sustained multiple stab wounds to his chest and back and was nearly decapitated with a knife wound across his neck

The Suffolk County Office of the Medical Examiner found that Powers sustained multiple stab wounds to his chest and back and was nearly decapitated with a knife wound across his neck. A search warrant was conducted at the apartment on Dixon Avenue where both men lived, which resulted in the recovery of several knives, the DA said. In addition, there was evidence that Scully-Powers allegedly attempted to clean up the scene, including a mop and bucket found in the bathroom as well as a blood-saturated bed sheet found in a garbage bag, Sini said.

He was arraigned Friday by Suffolk County District Court Judge John Kelly and was remanded without bail. He is due back in court on May 26. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in prison.

While walking out of his arraignment, Scully-Powers told a reporter that his father is "on drugs" and "raped him with a gun," according to a PIX11 report.