Search for Rocky Point resident Matthew Zoll, suspected in father's killing, expands, officials say

A law enforcement search for a Rocky Point man police said is wanted in the killing of his father entered its sixth day Thursday as county, state and federal agencies searched Brookhaven State Park in Shoreham.

Suffolk police remained tight-lipped about the search effort, saying only that they are still looking for Matthew Zoll, 23, who is accused in the stabbing death of his father. Police said Joseph Zoll, 61, was found dead of stab wounds in his Quail Road home following a 911 call shortly before 1:30 a.m. Saturday.

About three dozen members of the U.S. Marshals Service New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force were seen searching the woods east of William Floyd Parkway near Route 25A in Shoreham Thursday, as a police helicopter occasionally flew overhead.

Suffolk police also closed a turnaround on William Floyd north of Whiskey Road, where a mobile command unit was set up. Dozens of police vehicles, including marked units from the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department and New York State Police, lined the Route 25A intersection.

The search has been mostly concentrated in Brookhaven State Park, a densely wooded 1,600-acre property in the core pine barrens region featuring hiking trails and wetlands. The park extends from Shoreham into Ridge and is located about 6 miles from the Zoll home. 

Police declined to say why they have focused their efforts on the park.

"It’s frightening," said Peg Costanzo, of Ridge, who works in a building adjacent to the park. "People are concerned."

Sean Logan, of Shoreham, said that while seeing police search his hometown for several days is concerning, it’s also comforting knowing law enforcement is visible in the area.

"There’s cops everywhere," Logan said. "It makes me feel safer to know they're out there in the neighborhoods and they're keeping an eye out."

The Shoreham-Wading River school district, with its high school campus abutting Brookhaven State Park, advised parents of the search efforts in an email Monday, noting the district was adding security "out of an abundance of caution."

"Safety and security are our highest priority," Shoreham-Wading River Superintendent Gerard Poole wrote in the email. District spokesperson Deirdre Gilligan, of Syntax, a marketing communication service, said Thursday that the district "remains hyper vigilant."

A Seventh Precinct officer found Joseph Zoll ins his home at 1:25 a.m. Saturday following a 911 call reporting a stabbing in the home, police said. The elder Zoll was taken to Stony Brook University Hospital, where police said he was pronounced dead.

Matthew Zoll is 6-1 and 150 pounds, police said in a news release Sunday. He has brown hair, brown eyes and a small scar under his left eye, police said, adding that he was "not believed to have a vehicle."

Police are asking anyone with information about Matthew Zoll’s whereabouts to call 911, the Homicide Squad at 631-852-6392 or Crime Stoppers at 800-220-8477.

By Grant Parpan

grant.parpan@newsday.com@GrantParpan

Grant Parpan covers Suffolk County courts and federal courts for Newsday. A Long Island native, he joined Newsday in 2022.