New records released under the state Freedom of Information Law provide new details about the October 2024 death of Sabina Khorramdel Rosas, a 33-year-old New York City artist whose life and work bridged contemporary art circles and Central Asian cultural exchange. The Suffolk County Police Department had previously described the death as violent, but new documents outline the grisly sequence of events, the weapon believed to have been used, and the troubling text messages left behind by Rosas’ boyfriend, Thomas J. Gannon, hours after the killing.
Rosas was killed in a room at Shou Sugi Ban House, a spa in Southampton that attracts high-end travelers and art-world visitors. The records show she and Gannon checked into Unit 12 on the preceding Saturday night, Oct. 26, 2024. By the early hours of Oct. 28, authorities say, Rosas had been bludgeoned with a hammer and left on a bed in the couple’s room. Investigators described extensive blunt-force injuries to the skull and face, as well as injuries to the arms and legs, defensive wounds on her hands, and nail gouges consistent with a struggle.
A blood-stained hammer bearing the Great Neck brand was recovered from the room under the bed, according to police documents. Gannon, a contractor who owned Majestic Tile, Granite and Flooring in Honesdale, Pa., fled the scene and later killed himself with a .380-caliber handgun after sending a series of messages to his ex-wife that have drawn attention in the case. The ex-wife’s account, as summarized in the records, indicates Gannon complained that Rosas had drained his finances and that he felt she had too much control over him. In the messages, he referenced money, trips, and losses, and he signaled that he could no longer live with the situation before the suicide.
Hours after the violent crime, investigators say Gannon texted his ex-wife with a confession-like tone, describing the young artist as someone who had drained him financially and asserting there was no way to stop her. In the same messages, he described the relationship as if he had reached a breaking point. He then reportedly instructed his ex-wife to contact police back at his home in Hidden Brooke Drive, Pennsylvania, before taking his own life.
The autopsy and crime-scene details in the records indicate Rosas suffered catastrophic head trauma in a sustained attack. Law-enforcement sources have said the case was almost certainly a homicide, with Rosas as the target, and that the killer and victim had shared a personal relationship consistent with a long-term pattern of dependence on one another’s financial support. The hammer and the blood spatter at the bed, according to the documents, point to a brutal, premeditated assault rather than a sudden eruption of violence.
Rosas, born in Tajikistan, arrived in New York City in 2009 at age 17 and soon became a noted painter of vivid watercolors. She founded the Ruyò Journal, a publication devoted to Central Asian art, and published a book of work by women artists. Friends and colleagues described her as a gifted, compassionate artist who brought color and energy to collaborative projects and cultural exchanges. Records indicate that Rosas relied on Gannon at times to fund her artistic endeavors and travel, and that their relationship included financial support from him during their time together.
In the months before her death, Rosas had expressed intentions to change or end the relationship, according to accounts cited by the Times. A professor of art at SUNY Purchase said Rosas had confided that she planned to break off the relationship with Gannon, though the notes do not detail the reasons for that decision beyond financial and emotional strain described by sources familiar with the case. Rosas’ family issued a statement in the wake of her death praising her as a loving sister and a gifted artist who brought joy and color into the lives of those around her.
The case has continued to reverberate through New York art circles and the Hamptons’ upscale communities, where Shou Sugi Ban House has become known not only as a wellness retreat but also as a gathering place for creative professionals and collectors. Law-enforcement officials emphasized that the records released under FOIA provide a timeline and a documentary record of the events surrounding Rosas’ death, but they cautioned that the investigation remains active as authorities pursue potential financial or other related angles in the case.
Beyond the immediate crime-scene specifics, Rosas’ artists’ community mourned the loss of a young talent who had built a bridge between contemporary artistic practice and cultural histories of Central Asia. Friends remembered her as someone who infused her canvases with luminous color and narrative detail, and who used the Ruyò Journal to spotlight artists who might otherwise remain unseen by mainstream audiences.
Gannon’s obituary was published in the Poughkeepsie Journal, but it did not mention the crime or his suicide. The family-supplied obituary described him as a person of talent and warmth, a reminder of the dual legacies that can accompany a life entangled in wealth, art-world influence, and turbulent personal relationships. Rosas’ relatives and colleagues continue to honor her memory and her contributions to the broader conversation about art, culture, and women artists.
The records released this week underscore the sequence of events: the couple checked into a luxury spa on a quiet weekend in late October; a late checkout was requested just before the discovery of Rosas’ body; Gannon traveled hundreds of miles to his Pennsylvania home, leaving behind a confession-like text that depicted a spiraling financial conflict and a fatal impulse. The weapon, a hammer with a known brand, was found at the scene. The investigation has been conducted with the cooperation of the spa’s staff and investigators who have pieced together timelines from security logs, room-service records, and text messages, all of which have helped corroborate the events as described in the documents.
As the art world absorbs the details of this tragedy, Rosas’ legacy continues through the work she created and the journal that bore her name. The case continues to be a somber reminder of how personal finance, dependence, and power dynamics can entwine within artistic careers. The spa, once a quiet retreat for wellness-seekers and collectors alike, is now part of a narrative that intersects culture, celebrity, and a brutally violent end to a promising life.
