By Jeff Lipton
The victim, Alfonse N. D'Amore, 28, was killed in his home at 116 Jefferson St., detectives said. In a rage, his 26-year-old brother, Eric, shot him 14 times with a 22-caliber rifle that he had bought on the street weeks before the killing, according to Det. Lt. Dennis Farrell, commanding officer of the Nassau County Homicide Squad. When the sawed-off weapon ran out of bullets, Eric reloaded and fired again, Farrell added.
Eric D'Amore was charged with second-degree murder after homicide detectives conducted an investigation Monday night. The suspect also killed his brother's English bulldog, police said. D'Amore was arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead on Tuesday.
The alleged murder weapon was recovered from Eric D'Amore's bedroom in the small cottage-style house. He apparently bought the weapon for protection, Farrell said.
Last Friday, Nov. 8, Alfonse D'Amore apparently became involved in a heated argument with the men's mother, Emily D'Amore, 57, according to Farrell. He became physically abusive, behavior that may have included pulling her hair, and, said Farrell, Eric apparently took great exception to that.
The bad feelings spilled over to Monday afternoon at about 1 p.m., when Alfonse was on the phone with a friend and Eric opened fire, emptying the rifle, Farrell said. He then reloaded and continued to fire at his older brother. He also fired one shot at the dog, killing it instantly, police said.
Alfonse's friend on the phone heard the commotion and the shots and called police. Mrs. D'Amore had left the house an hour before the shooting, according to Farrell. When officers arrived at the house, Eric led them to the body of his brother, which was slumped on the living room couch, Farrell said. The dog's body was also found nearby. The animal may have been killed because Eric felt threatened by it, Farrell said.
Police cordoned off the block with yellow tape as they gathered evidence at the scene and neighbors looked on. Alfonse D'Amore's body was removed from the house at about 5:45 p.m. Monday. A second, uninjured dog was also removed from the house and taken to the Town of Hempstead Animal Shelter.
Farrell said that Alfonse had recently moved back into the house after the breakup of his marriage, and since then tension had run high between the brothers.
There was a hostility, a stress level between the two brothers for quite some time, Farrell said. There was a noticeable level of tension, and neighbors reported hearing arguments.
This is not the first time Eric D'Amore has been in trouble with the law. In 1992, at age 16, he was arrested after he allegedly doused his mother with gasoline and set her on fire with a lighter in their backyard, critically injuring her, according to neighbors and news reports. She survived the incident, for which Eric received five years of probation, Farrell said.
In 1997, D'Amore was charged with unauthorized use of a vehicle and received three years of probation, he said.
Eric was described by neighbors as a quiet person who rarely said a word. They said he was troubled as a teen and has had a history of emotional problems.
He set his mother on fire and he killed his own brother something has got to be wrong with him, said one neighbor. He never had a very good upbringing.
Both brothers had worked as auto-body repairmen at some point, Farrell said. According to neighbors, the victim, who had since established a successful career in real estate, had bought a home on the block for his mother and brother to live in. And this is his thanks? one neighbor said.
Although the family lived on the block for many years, neighbors said they didn't socialize much and kept to themselves. The family was very distant, said a Jefferson Street neighbor. They stayed to themselves. I didn't think it would come down to this.
It's a shame, she said of the murder. This is a great neighborhood. This is the first time anything like this has ever happened over here.
The murder shocked not only the brothers' neighbors, but friends as well. Robinson Lerebours, who attended Lawrence High School with Al in the early 1990s, called him a very outstanding guy. He was a very friendly guy and very nice. Lerebours said his friend held dreams of becoming a chef and opening a restaurant.
[Alphonse] bought a house for his mom and his brother to live there, said Lerebours. The guy never harmed anyone. I spoke to him four days ago. He always talked about opening a restaurant. He wanted to become an entrepreneur. He loved cooking.
From what I saw, he was very sweet with his brother and with his family and he would give anything to his family.
But Marie Aoudou, who said she works as a home health- care provider next door to the D'Amore home, understands that the victim constantly harassed his younger brother. [Eric] was fed up with life, she said. [Alfonse] harassed [Eric] when he came home from work and they would start fighting. He would pick on him all the time.
The younger brother never said anything. I always saw him working on his car.
