Long Island Mom Pleads for Help Finding Son’s Killer, Fast Cash Reward Now on Table

Will a grieving mother’s desperate plea crack a cold Long Island murder case? Suffolk County cops plan to give it a try.

Homicide squad detectives are expected to join Suffolk County Police Commissioner Rodney Harrison and Marie Rosental at a news briefing Wednesday in an effort to stir up potential new leads in the 2021 death of her son Danie Philistin.

Philistin was at a house party on Gordon Avenue in West Babylon when he was shot to death just outside of it late one night in July 2021. The New Jersey resident was 29 years old.

No arrests have been made in the case. Suffolk County Crime Stoppers is offering a cash reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to arrest. That’s a “fast cash reward,” meaning it is payable within seven days of an arrest.

More details on the case, including video evidence, are expected to be released later Wednesday.

According to his archived obituary, Philistin was born in Brooklyn and educated in New York City public schools. He attended P.S 152 Elementary School and Ditmas I.S. 62 Middle School, then graduated from New Utrecht High School in June 2011. He earned a bachelor’s degree in sports management in 2019 from Alfred State University.

A noted football player during his days in Brooklyn public schools, Philistin was remembered as a leader on and off the field, according to The Daily Voice, and mourned widely in the aftermath of his death.