A profound sense of loss descended upon a luxury high-rise construction project on Manhattan's Upper West Side on a crisp autumn morning. The day, which had started like any other, was irrevocably shattered by an act of violence that claimed the life of Christopher Sayers, a 37-year-old male construction foreman from Plainview. Known among his colleagues as a quiet and good-natured man, Sayers was a dedicated worker who would arrive early, have his coffee, and then diligently go about his
duties. He was a family man, with a wife and children, whose lives would be forever altered by the events of that day.
The tragic chain of events was set in motion by Samuel Perry, a 44-year-old former carpenter who had been dismissed from his job at the Waterline Square development just two days earlier. Described by co-workers as a 'hothead,' Perry returned to the construction site on the morning of October 5, 2017, evidently consumed by anger over his termination. He located Sayers on the 37th floor of the building under construction and, in a shocking act of workplace violence, shot his former boss multiple times. Sayers was pronounced dead at the scene.
The sound of gunfire prompted a swift response from the New York City Police Department. As officers swarmed the building, a search for the gunman ensued. The grim discovery was made on the fifth floor, where authorities found Samuel Perry, dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The incident was determined to be a murder-suicide, and with the suspect deceased, no arrests were made. The investigation that followed confirmed that Perry had acted alone, his actions seemingly a direct and tragic retaliation for his recent firing. The brutal and sudden loss of Christopher Sayers left his family, friends, and colleagues to mourn a man who was remembered as a good foreman and a quiet individual who never gave anyone a hard time.
