HUNTINGTON, NY-Well known real estate executive Gary Melius was recovering at North Shore Hospital on Monday after being shot at about 12:30 p.m. outside his lavish Oheka Castle estate turned high-end catering hall here.

Melius, 69, was shot in the forehead by a masked gunman, but was expected to live. He was listed in stable condition, according to one published report. The power broker, who has extensive ties to politicians on both sides of the aisle, lives in Oheka Castle with his family. The New York Post reports that law enforcement sources speculate the shooting was a botched hit.

Melius' company at one time owned more than one million square feet of buildings on Long Island, but hit hard times in the early 1990s, according to Newsday.

Some years back he purchased Oheka Castle and then sold it to a Japanese businessman for $22 million in 1988. He began leasing it back in 1993 and reclaimed full ownership of the property about 10 years later. He eventually secured approvals from the Town of Huntington and converted the facility into a full-service catering and event hall. Melius, who has said that he spent $40 million on the property, has hosted weddings for such celebrities and politicos as one of the Jonas Brothers and former Democratic Rep. Anthony Weiner and his wife, Huma Abedin, a longtime aide to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Recently, Melius found himself in the news when reports of a phone call between Melius and Nassau Police Commissioner Thomas Dale led to Dale's ouster. See story in Newsday.

Instant Insights /

Real Estate Executive, LI Power Broker Shot Outside Oheka Castle

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