QUEENS — A Bayside man has been charged with murdering his mother and father a year apart, according to the Queen's district attorney's office.
Gregory Cucchiara, 36, allegedly struck his mother, Giusepina, in the head before drowning her in May of 2011.
Then, in August of 2012, police said Cucchiara suffocated his father, Carmelo, who was found lying on his back in bed with a pillow next to his head.
Witnesses later told cops that they overheard several heated arguments between father and son in the days leading up to murder, according to the criminal complaint.
“This is a horrifying case of a young man throwing his life away and betraying the trust of his family — first by allegedly drowning his mother and then, a year later, suffocating his father,” Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown said in a statement.
“The defendant’s actions, if true, are incomprehensible in a civilized society and must be severely punished.”
Cucchiara has also been charged with assaulting two police officers who questioned him about the murders back in November.
He faces 50 years to life in prison if convicted.
