Sources have confirmed that a Staten Island teen allegedly decapitated his mother’s boyfriend in a West Brighton home following years of domestic disputes and emergency calls.
The victim, 45-year-old city Department of Sanitation worker Anthony Casalaspro, had been listed as the alleged aggressor in at least five domestic violence-related 911 calls to the family residence dating back to 2021.
Authorities said the calls documented multiple violent incidents between Casalaspro and the family, as well as mental health crises involving Damien Hurstel, the teen at the center of the alleged attack.
In one of the most recent incidents in 2023, sources said Casalaspro allegedly attacked Hurstel while reportedly intoxicated, before striking Hurstel’s mother.
Police had previously instructed Casalaspro to leave the home during the incident, but he returned despite the warning, according to sources familiar with the case.
Neighbors on the tree-lined street described witnessing troubling events spilling from the Cary Avenue home over the years.
“She was screaming,” a neighbor, who asked to remain anonymous, recalled.
“I never heard anyone scream like that. She was on the ground, her leg was bent the wrong way. I said, ‘Do you want me to call 911?’ (The boyfriend) said, ‘No, you’re fine, you’re fine.’”
Sources said the first documented domestic violence call in 2021 involved Hurstel’s mother reporting that Casalaspro had been breaking items in the home and brandishing a handgun.
The weapon was never recovered.
Casalaspro, who had severe vision loss and had been forced to go on disability, also had a criminal record extending over two decades.
The New York Post reported that according to sources, his history included a 2000 arrest on suspicion of selling drugs, a 2015 possession of a gravity knife charge and a 2020 incident involving assault and reckless driving.
Authorities said Hurstel had also been the subject of mental health-related emergency calls over the years.
Sources reported that Hurstel’s mother had told 911 operators that her son had threatened suicide beginning in 2022, and on one occasion, he had cut his hands multiple times.
The ongoing domestic disturbances at the Cary Avenue home were characterized by repeated calls from family members, neighbors, and emergency responders reporting escalating conflicts.
Hurstel’s mother and other family members declined to comment on the events leading up to the alleged decapitation.
Police have opened an investigation into the fatal incident and are examining the prior history of domestic disputes, mental health concerns and criminal activity connected to the household.
Neighbors described the environment as increasingly tense in the years before the alleged killing, noting visible injuries and frequent yelling and screaming emanating from the home.
The combination of repeated domestic complaints and mental health crises has drawn attention to the ongoing risks in the household before the fatal incident.
The Post highlighted that authorities have not released additional details regarding Hurstel’s charges, Casalaspro’s medical condition at the time or the exact timeline of the alleged decapitation.
