Suffolk County police are investigating the shooting of Oheka Castle owner Gary Melius at the sprawling Huntington estate. While police say that it "appears that Mr. Melius was the target," his friend, former Senator Al D'Amato, had a stronger assessment: "It was not a robbery. It was an attempt at assassination."

D'Amato told Newsday he had plans to meet Melius for lunch but when he heard about the shooting he headed straight to the castle, "He was at the Castle, outside. Nobody put a gun to him or said, 'We want your money.' They just shot him. The guy had a mask on." Melius was apparently shot in the face.

NBC New York reports, "Frank MacKay, a friend of Melius, told NBC 4 New York that Melius was sitting in his car when a man appeared outside and opened fire on him through the glass window. Melius' daughters called 911 but ended up taking him to the hospital themselves, MacKay said." Melius is in stable condition after surgery; MacKay spoke to him on the phone and said he was joking. "He's the toughest man I've ever met," he added.

Melius, who lives on the estate, bought the famed Oheka Castle in 1984, when it was in disrepair, and eventually turned it into a catering hall and hotel. It is the second-largest private residence in the country, with 109,000 square feet and has been the setting for many TV shows and films, including Citizen Kane. Newsday notes that Melius has been active in donating to politicians (the Post calls him a "political power broker"):

Late last year, Melius found himself in a postelection controversy involving Nassau Police Commissioner Thomas Dale, triggering the events that led to the top cop's ouster in December. He had called Dale to say he wanted to file perjury charges against a campaign worker who had raised allegations of election impropriety against county executive candidate Andrew Hardwick, who Melius supported.

In recent years, Oheka has faced financial struggles, and Melius negotiated a modification of Oheka's $27.9 million mortgage in August, according to public records. A year earlier, he had defaulted on the loan. The law enforcement source said investigators looking into Melius' background "are learning a lot about him. There are many deals he was involved in. But this is all very early, and the effort now is to find the shooter and the car."

...Melius has frequently opened his own wallet for political candidates of all parties. In the past decade, he and his wife, Pam, have donated more than $700,000 to local and state committees, elections board records show. Since the late 1990s, about $170,000 has been donated to federal campaigns, according to records. State records show that Melius typically donates to officials in power at the time, regardless of party.

Melius' lawyer Ron Rosenberg said, "One of the problems in our society is sometimes we try to look for a reason in the victim for the horrible criminal acts of the perpetrators who have no justification and whatever sick motive they may have is not a reflection of the victim."

Police are reviewing surveillance cameras at the estate.