A 47-year-old man, arrested on Thursday and charged in the murder of Robert Casado, lured Mr. Casado to Kirk Park, where he killed him with a pickaxe, all because they had the same love interest, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Timothy D. Sini.
Joseph A. Grippo, who had been friends with the 38-year-old Mr. Casado at one point, was arraigned on a second-degree murder charge in East Hampton Town Justice Court on Friday morning.
"The victim allegedly had a relationship — a romantic relationship — with the defendant's significant other that caused the defendant to be upset," Mr. Sini said. "The defendant lured the victim to an area, a park in Montauk, where he stabbed and beat the victim in the face and head." He would not comment on whether the murder weapon had been recovered.
People walking in the park the morning of June 6 found Mr. Casado on a path and called 911 just before 7:30. He was pronounced dead at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital. "The cause of death was blunt force trauma and stab wounds to the face and neck," Mr. Sini said.
Mr. Grippo was arrested in his car at the intersection of Old Montauk Highway and Montauk Highway on Thursday, two weeks after the murder, at 3:47 p.m., the D.A.'s office said. From the start, detectives said they did not believe it was a random attack.
Justice Lisa R. Rana ordered him held without bail because he stands charged with a class A felony. His court-appointed attorney, Dan Russo, entered a not-guilty plea on his behalf.
Mr. Grippo has a lengthy criminal record, including a conviction for an armed robbery in the first degree in another jurisdiction in 1998, for which he served 15 years in prison, according to Kerriann Kelly, the homicide bureau chief with the Suffolk County district attorney's office. He also served time for burglary and has several misdemeanor convictions, Ms. Kelly said.
He has been living at his mother's house on Old Montauk Highway for the last two years.
Ms. Kelly said little in court, but told the justice that her office was presenting the case to a grand jury on Friday morning. She said her office would hold the proceeding open if Mr. Grippo wished to testify. Mr. Russo said his client would not be testifying. Once a grand jury indicts Mr. Grippo, the case will be transferred to Suffolk County Criminal Court.
Mr. Casado's father, Benny Garces, his brothers, and several friends sat in court quietly as Mr. Grippo was arraigned. Many of them wore buttons with a picture of Mr. Casado's face. His father was overcome with emotion as he left the courtroom and leaned on his family and a friend for support. A court officer brought him a chair and offered to call for ambulance, which he declined. He was helped to his car.
Edgar Ramirez, who described Mr. Casado as his best friend, said Mr. Casado and Mr. Grippo had been friends, but that they had had a fight over the woman. "I knew it the whole time," Mr. Ramirez said when asked if he was surprised when Mr. Grippo was arrested. "I used to go to his house and party with him," Mr. Ramirez said, adding that he stopped hanging out with him because "he was acting crazy."
Two months ago, Mr. Casado and Mr. Grippo fought after the woman said Mr. Grippo kicked down a door at a room she rented at a Montauk motel. Mr. Ramirez did not know which motel.
Mr. Grippo was transferred to the Suffolk County jail in Riverside. Mr. Russo asked Justice Rana to note on his file that Mr. Grippo is in need of medical attention, as he just had surgery on Tuesday and needs to have staples removed. He did not offer any more information about the surgery.
"All I know is it's an accusation," Mr. Russo said outside of court. "We're going to defend it."
With Reporting by Cecelia Scheuer