Murder of Thomas Gilbert Sr. by his own son Thomas Gilbert Jr. examined on Snapped

Oxygen is re-airing the Snapped investigation into the murder of millionaire businessman Thomas Gilbert Sr. by his son Thomas Gilbert Jr. at the family apartment in Manhattan, New York.

On January 4, 2015, 30-year-old Gilbert Jr. went to his parents’ mid-town apartment and shot his 70-year-old father point-blank in the head with a .40-caliber handgun. He had purchased the weapon illegally the previous year on a trip to Ohio.

The son then placed the firearm into his father’s hands, hoping to make the scene look like a suicide. He then fled the apartment.

Shelley Gilbert, the victim’s wife and the killer’s mother found the body and dialed 911.

When asked who had shot her husband, Shelley responded, “My son, who is nuts. But I didn’t know he was this nuts.”

Gilbert Jr. had long suffered from a series of mental illnesses, including depression and paranoia. His mother would later claim he was suffering from schizophrenia.

Thomas Gilbert Jr. shot his wealthy father after his allowance was lowered

The prosecution argued that Gilbert Jr. shot his father because he had lowered his allowance from $1,000 a month to $300. The younger man had always struggled to hold down a proper job, but his parents funded a fairly lavish lifestyle for him. They had reduced his allowance in an effort to force him to be more independent.

Gilbert Jr. had an active social life and was good at sports but struggled to pay his own way. His parents concluded that the best way to look after him was to keep him close and in their “orbit.”

Shelley explained later in an interview, “You want him to see as many friends as possible. Tennis and surfing, it helped relieve stress. It was almost like medicine. It was the best we could do for him.”

She added, “Our goal was to keep him close. If you did anything that really bothered him, he would disappear.”

Shelley’s opinion about her son didn’t change after her husband’s murder. The family spent a fortune on defense attorneys, expert witnesses, and psychiatric examinations. They argued that Gilert Jr.’s mental health was entirely to blame and that he should be put into a psychiatric hospital near his family.

Thomas Gilbert Jr. convicted of the second-degree murder of his dad

The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office also hired psychologists who said there was no reason why Gilbert Jr. shouldn’t face a murder trial.

The prosecution accused the killer of being “spoiled” by his parents, who he then turned on with a cold-calculated murder.

A jury convicted Gilbert Jr. of second-degree murder and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon. He was sentenced to the maximum allowed of 30 years.

Shelley Gilbert has said she regrets not having her son committed to a psychiatric hospital before it was too late. The killer has never given a reason as to why he shot his father.

This episode of Snapped re-airs Friday at 6/5c on Oxygen.