A Suffolk County, New York detective who helped lead the search for a fugitive murder suspect discovered what police believe is the suspect’s body floating in his own backyard pool while preparing to open it for the summer season on May 25, 2025.
Detective Thomas Corso, a veteran Suffolk County police officer assigned to the U.S. Marshals New York/New Jersey Fugitive Task Force, was removing the winter cover from his swimming pool at his East Shoreham, Long Island home with his teenage son when they made the grisly discovery.
The body found in the pool is believed to be that of Matthew Zoll, a 23-year-old murder suspect who has been missing since November 9, 2024, when he allegedly stabbed his 61-year-old father, postal worker Joseph Zoll, to death in their Rocky Point, Long Island home. Zoll, who was reportedly schizophrenic, fled the scene after the alleged killing and crashed his vehicle on William Floyd Parkway approximately 10 minutes later before disappearing on foot.
Suffolk Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina addressed the discovery during a press conference on May 28, 2025, explaining the strong possibility that the remains belong to the fugitive suspect. Catalina indicated that, considering the location where the body was discovered, its closeness to what is believed to be Matthew Zoll’s crash site, the clothing, and the absence of shoes on the individual, authorities are strongly exploring the likelihood that the body belongs to Matthew Zoll.
The location of Corso’s home proved significant to the investigation, as the property borders a wooded area that leads directly to William Floyd Parkway, positioned approximately half a mile from where Zoll crashed his car following the alleged murder. U.S. Marshals, including Corso himself, had spent several days searching the wooded areas off the parkway, including the 1,600-acre Brookhaven State Park, in an intensive manhunt for the murder suspect that ultimately proved unsuccessful.
Investigators believe Zoll may have fled into the detective’s backyard and attempted to hide underneath the winter pool cover, where he subsequently died. The commissioner provided details about the pool cover arrangement, noting it was a Loop-Loc cover with one portion that appeared to be undone, allowing the body to become concealed beneath that section of the covering.
Police indicated the body appeared to have been in the water for an extended period and showed signs of being well-preserved. Commissioner Catalina declined to confirm whether the residence belonged to a member of the police force, and Corso himself declined to comment on the situation when approached by reporters.
Authorities have not yet definitively confirmed the identity of the body found in the pool. DNA testing and an autopsy are being conducted to determine both the victim’s identity and the cause of death. Potential causes being investigated include drowning, hypothermia, and suffocation.
Commissioner Catalina emphasized that investigators found no evidence of foul play at the well-maintained East Shoreham residence.
Neighbors in the quiet East Shoreham community expressed shock at the discovery. The area where the body was found is described as a safe neighborhood where such incidents are considered highly unusual.
The case represents a significant development in a months-long investigation that had gone cold since Zoll’s disappearance in November 2024. The ironic twist that the detective involved in searching for the suspect would ultimately discover what police believe are his remains has added an unusual dimension to an already complex case.