New York son kills father during Zoom meeting

Suffolk County Police said in a statement that Dwight Powers, 72, was on a Zoom chat with multiple people when his son, Thomas Scully-Powers, attacked him. — Bloomberg

NEW YORK: A 32-year-old American in a New York suburb stabbed and killed his father who was participating on a Zoom video call on May 21, police said.

Suffolk County Police said in a statement that Dwight Powers, 72, was on a Zoom chat with multiple people when his son, Thomas Scully-Powers, attacked him.

The murder took place in the town of Amityville – known in particular for the horror book series bearing its name and related film, which came out in 1979.

Several participants in the virtual chat called emergency authorities, police said.

Scully-Powers was quickly apprehended and briefly hospitalised for minor injuries sustained when he jumped out a window after the stabbing.

He was released from hospital on Friday morning and will be arraigned for murder charges in the second degree, police said.

The murder appeared to be the first carried out on Zoom, which has boomed in popularity since confinement measures forced people to stay at home during the coronavirus pandemic. – AFP