Christopher Martin, 48, dies after fight in Shirley house, police say; 2 charged with gang assault

Two people were arrested Monday after a man died following a fight at a house in Shirley during which he was hit over the head with a sledgehammer, barbells and a television, according to authorities.

Five people took part in the attack, according to court papers. The two who were arrested, Korey Sammarco, 36, of Shirley, and Melissa Fawcett, 50, of Central Islip, were charged with gang assault in the first degree, the Suffolk County Police Department wrote in a news release Tuesday morning. The victim was identified as 48-year-old Christopher Martin.

At an arraignment Tuesday afternoon, Sammarco and Fawcett were held and bail was set at $1 million for Sammarco and $500,000 for Fawcett.

Martin and Sammarco both lived in the Hounslow Road house, according to the release, which said Martin rented a room at the location.

Martin had sustained fractured ribs, a broken nose "and severe facial trauma," according to a felony complaint against Sammarco, who is accused of wielding the sledgehammer and TV and punching Martin. Fawcett told police, "Yeah, I took a couple shots at him, then I smashed his cell phone on the street," the complaint against her says. 

Fawcett gave a videotaped statement about the crime to police.

At the arraignment, Sheetal Shetty, a Suffolk assistant district attorney, said Martin and Sammarco had an ongoing feud and that Fawcett was Martin's ex-girlfriend. Shetty said Sammarco had gone to the house Saturday to remove his belongings, with a police escort. 

On Sunday, she said, five people, including Sammarco, pulled up in two cars to the house, activity that was captured on Ring footage from across the street.

Shetty said the footage captured Sammarco and the group entering the house, where he kicked down the door and proceeded to "mercilessly" and "viciously" beat Martin.

Shetty said Sammarco admitted beating Martin in the head with dumbbells and a sledgehammer, and smashing his head with a television, then removing his personal items from the house.

Officers went to the house Sunday around 7:30 p.m. after someone there called 911 to report that a fight had seriously injured a man who rents a room. After police arrived, Martin was brought to NYU Langone Hospital–Suffolk in Patchogue, where he was declared dead.

On Monday, Sammarco and Fawcett were arrested following an investigation by the police homicide squad.

Sammarco and Fawcett pleaded not guilty. Eric Besso, the lawyer for Fawcett, had no comment. John Halverson, who represented Sammarco, said he was awaiting documents from the prosecution to pursue a defense in the case.

A person is guilty of felony gang assault if he or she intentionally seriously injures another person with the help of at least two others. It was not clear whether any additional persons were to be charged. The statute does not require that the accused is part of a gang.