Lake Grove Man Pleads Guilty To Attempted Murder In Wife's Attack

SUFFOLK COUNTY, NY — A Lake Grove man admitted to attempted murder after he beat and strangled his wife in front of their 17-year-old daughter in May 2022, Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney announced Wednesday.

The man, 45, pleaded guilty to second-degree attempted murder and other charges.

The DA did not name the man to protect the identity of his wife and daughter.

"This defendant directed his violent rage in a horrific torrent of domestic violence," Tierney said in a news release. "Thankfully, the victim and their daughter were able to escape the defendant and their home before this terrible night ended in the victim's death."

The woman was awakened at 2:30 a.m. May 22, 2022, when her husband turned the lights on in their bedroom, according to court documents and the man's guilty plea.

When the woman asked the man what he was doing, he became enraged and dragged her out of the bed and into the bathtub, prosecutors said. While the woman was in the bathtub, the man strangled her until she lost consciousness, investigators said. Their 17-year-old daughter heard the commotion and tried to get into the bathroom, the DA said.

The man then dragged his wife into the kitchen in front of their child and held her up by her neck before banging her head repeatedly into the cabinets and countertop, officials said. The child pleaded with her father to stop and tried to call the police, but the man took her phone away and broke it, authorities said. The man continued beating his wife, holding her by her neck and throwing her across the living room, prosecutors said.

The woman fled to the basement, but her husband chased her and grabbed her by the neck again and slammed her into the wall, officials said. When she fell to the ground, the man grabbed her by the hair and repeatedly bashed her head into the cement floor as she drifted in and out of consciousness, investigators said.

The daughter helped the woman finally escape the home, and they ran to a neighbor's house and called the police, the DA said.

The man barricaded himself in his home for five hours when police arrived, but was eventually arrested.

The woman was treated for multiple skull fractures, loss of hearing in her right ear, and bruising across her face and body at a local hospital, Tierney said.

The man pleaded guilty to a count of second-degree attempted murder, a count of first-degree assault, a count of first-degree strangulation, a count of second-degree assault, one count of second-degree strangulation, a count of fourth-degree criminal mischief, one count of fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, and two counts of second-degree criminal contempt.

His sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 19. He is being represented by Christopher Brocato.