The haunting final text messages of the Long Island woman killed by her brother in a horrifying murder-suicide reveal she was celebrating her 64th birthday when she was shot dead.
Tina Hammond was visiting her late mother’s house on Sunday when she was gunned down by brother Joe DeLucia, 59, alongside her brother Frank DeLucia, also 64, daughter Victoria, 30, and sister Joanna Kearns, 69.
Killer DeLucia was said to be struggling with the death of their mother Theresa Martha De Lucia, 95, and was scared of losing the family home where he had lived his entire life. His former coworkers today described the car technician as ‘mild-mannered,’ ‘respectful’ and a ‘good employee.’
Horrifying screengrabs obtained by DailyMail.com show Tina had replied to a text from friend and neighbor Randi Marquis wishing her happy birthday 15 minutes before her death.
Tina Hammond was celebrating her 64th birthday on Sunday when she was gunned down by brother Joe De Lucia, 59, alongside her brother Frank DeLucia, also 64, daughter Victoria, 30, and sister Joanna Kearns, 69
Haunting screengrabs show Hammond had responded to a happy birthday message from friend Randi Marquis just 15 minutes before she died
Randi texted Tina at 11.35am on Sunday to say: Happy Birthday! Make sure no one eats lunch.’
In response, Tina wrote at 11.38am: ‘Thank you, I’ll be at mom’s in five minutes thank you so much, Randy lol I’ll tell them.’
Texts between Randi and DeLucia week earlier show how Randi had tried to comfort the killer before the tragic incident.
After being told about Theresa’s death, Randi told DeLucia: ‘I am sooo sad to hear that Joe. I was actually thinking about you last night since I didn’t see your car and thought you would with your mom and I was happy about that.
‘I will miss her dearly. She was a true, awesome woman. God bless her and let me know if you need anything.’
Joe simply replied: ‘Thank you.’
He later promised Randi he would eat food, adding: ‘I will. I need to take a nap. I have not slept in a while.’
DeLucia reportedly suffered from mental health issues and was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck, depriving him of oxygen.
An exclusive image obtained by DailyMail.com show DeLucia’s driving license headshot
Texts between Randi and DeLucia week earlier show how Randi had tried to comfort the killer before the tragic incident.
His mental state was said to nosedived after family matriarch Theresa died on August 19 and was buried on Friday.
Sources told DailyMail.com DeLucia was $45,000 in debt and was struggling with the prospect of his family home being sold.
Police said psychiatric medicine was found in the home during a search, along with a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun that was legally bought by DeLucia.
Detective Captain Stephen Fitzpatrick said neighbors claimed DeLucia told them: ‘If you hear gunshots, don’t bother calling 911, it’ll be too late’.
But today, DeLucia’s former coworkers at Advantage Hyundai in Hicksville – where he had worked for eight years – expressed disbelief at the news.
Ring Camera footage from Randi’s home on August 20 show Tina (right) with daughter Victoria in the neighborhood the day after family matriarch Theresa died
Joseph Gentile, the general counsel for the dealership, told DailyMail.com: ‘He was a good employee.
‘He came to work every day. He did not have any problems with his co-worker or his manager nor did not have any problems with his customers.’
‘It’s incomprehensible. We know he loved his mother and he did speak about his mother often to people. He had told people his mother was sick but this is just a shock.’
He added: ‘He was mild-mannered, respectful and diligent at his job. It was just a complete tragedy.’
