Suspect traced after murder in luxury spa frequented by top stars

The suspect behind the shocking murder of an artist at a luxury New York spa resort has been found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at his Pennsylvania home, police said.

Suffolk County police were looking for Thomas Gannon, 56, in connection with the murder of Sabina Rosas, a 33-year-old Brooklyn artist who was found dead in a guest room at the Shou Sugi Ban House in Water Mill, New York.

Rosas was an artist who studied new media at Purchase College in New York and graduated in 2020, a spokesperson for the school confirmed.

The two had been romantically involved for several years, according to Liz Phillips, one of Rosas’ former purchasing professors who had become a friend and expected to visit Monday.

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Sabina Rosas pictured at a recent art event while traveling abroad just days before her murder at a spa in New York’s Hamptons community. (Instagram/@ruyo.journal)

Rosas was born in Tajikistan, part of the former Soviet Union, and her family fled when she was just a child to escape the civil war. They traveled through Europe and Central Asia before arriving in the US in 2009, where she studied art.

“She was an amazing young person,” Phillips told Fox News Digital. “I mean, I wrote her a recommendation.”

An undated photo of Thomas Gannon provided to Fox News Digital. (Supplied to Fox News Digital)

Rosas worked as a Phillips assistant as a student and they became friends after she graduated. In fact, Gannon had been to Phillips’ home at least twice, the professor said, once in January for dinner and once in the summer.

Gannon, a divorcee, recently listed the then-Pennsylvania home where he was found dead for $550,000.

An undated photo of Sabina Rosas, who was found dead and murdered at a wellness retreat in Water Mill, New York on Monday, October 28, 2024. (Supplied to Fox News Digital)

Gannon’s LinkedIn profile identified him as a small business owner. His former partner told Fox News Digital that the two split more than a year ago when Gannon sold his shares.

“I’m not sure what he’s been up to,” he said. “This was a surprise.”

Police are investigating the murder of a woman at the Shou Sugi Ban House in Water Mill, New York, on Monday, October 28, 2024. According to police, the body was discovered in a guest room around 12:30 p.m. (Matt Agudo/Instar for Fox News Digital)

A search of Pennsylvania court records showed only one previous encounter with law enforcement: a parking ticket in 2022.

But things changed on Monday after an employee of the Shou Sugi Ban House found Rosas dead in a guest room.

According to authorities, the Southampton Town Police Department was the first to respond around 12:30 p.m.

The gate remains closed at the Shou Sugi Ban House in Water Mill, New York, Tuesday, October 29, 2024. (Matt Agudo/Instar for Fox News Digital)

When they suspected foul play, they called in the province for help.

A Suffolk County police mobile crime laboratory could be seen for hours on Monday outside the main building on the three-acre site, near a monumental Buddha statue at the main entrance.

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Police stand guard outside the Shou Sugi Ban House in Water Mill, New York on Monday, October 28, 2024. Authorities launched a murder investigation after a resort employee found a woman dead in a guest room with signs of violence. (Matt Agudo/Instar for Fox News Digital)

In a statement, Suffolk Police said the victim met a violent end. Few other details were available.

The spa did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Rooms at the Shou Sugi Ban House cost more than $1,000 per night.

Guests at previous events have included Hollywood A-listers such as Gwyneth Paltrow and Kate Hudson, as well as fashion designer Stella McCartney.

Gwyneth Paltrow hosts a dinner in the Hamptons at the Shou Sugi Ban House in New York on August 22, 2024. (Madison Fender/BFA.com/Shutterstock)

It was founded in 2019 by Amy Cherry-Abitbol as the Hamptons’ first luxury wellness resort, according to Condé Nast Travelerwhose readers have given the destination a top rating in each of the past four years.

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She was inspired by the Japanese concept of wabi-sabi, which the country defines as embracing nature and finding beauty in imperfection.

Cherry-Abitbol collaborated with Co-founder of Noma and Michelin-starred chef Mads Refslund for the food, according to the spa’s website.

This is a breaking news story.