A Long Island man accused of fatally stabbing his father was ordered held without bail after prosecutors described how the dying 69-year-old crawled to a phone to summon help.
Sage Arias-Brown, 33, pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder on Tuesday and is due back in court on Friday, officials said. He was arrested just blocks from his father Edward Brown’s Mastic apartment in the early hours of Labor Day after allegedly breaking in and attacking the older man.
The killing unfolded around 12:30 a.m. Monday, when Arias-Brown allegedly forced his way into the apartment he once shared with his father, according to Suffolk County prosecutors. What happened inside remains unclear, but authorities say the younger man stabbed Brown repeatedly in the abdomen and chest before fleeing.
A nearby witness heard the break-in and Brown’s screams for help, then watched Arias-Brown exit the building, Assistant District Attorney Melissa Grier told the court during the arraignment.
Somehow, despite his wounds, Brown found the strength to reach a phone and dial 911 to report the attack, Grier detailed. He collapsed while waiting for emergency responders, who arrived to find him dead at the scene.
Arias-Brown was taken into custody a short time later, police said. He appeared in court wearing a worn track suit and fidgeted throughout the proceeding, according to observers.
His attorney, Katherine Fernandez, told the court her client has a history of mental illness and an open robbery case.
Details of any confrontation or motive that preceded the violence have not been disclosed by investigators. Prosecutors have not said whether the father and son had been in contact before the alleged break-in or what might have prompted the attack.
Arias-Brown was remanded without bail following his not guilty plea. His next court appearance is scheduled for Friday.