Brett Knight indicted in death of Setauket horseman Ross Reisner

A longtime friend and former tenant of a well-known Setauket horseman has been indicted by a Suffolk grand jury for gunning him down last month, a prosecutor said Wednesday.

Brett C. Knight, 45, of Manhattan -- who authorities say has confessed to killing Ross Reisner -- is scheduled to be arraigned on the indictment Tuesday before a judge in Suffolk County Court in Riverhead. The charges will be unsealed at that time.

Reisner, 50, considered a fixture in the Island's equestrian community, was in his home on Upper Sheep Pasture Road when shots were fired from outside at 8:45 p.m. on Sept. 24, police said.

Authorities said Knight fired 11 shots from a .45-caliber handgun through a window, striking Reisner once in the chest. Another bullet grazed the arm of his partner, Kevin Murray.

Police haven't provided a motive for the shooting.

Knight, a former American Express manager, was captured in a home in eastern Tennessee last week. Authorities recovered two Smith & Wesson .40-caliber handguns in the room he had sublet, said Capt. Michael Hodges of the Sevier County Sheriff Department, which assisted in the arrest.

It's believed Knight bought the guns in Utah, Hodges said. He said Knight had been living in the Sevier County house for about a week after answering an online ad.

After the shooting, police launched a nationwide manhunt for Knight, who waived extradition after his capture and was brought to Long Island last Thursday.

Knight had known Reisner and Murray for more than two decades and rented the couple's basement apartment for a couple of years, according to Reisner's brother.

Knight, charged with one count of second-degree murder after his arrest, is being held without bail at the Riverhead jail. He and his attorney, Michael J. Brown of Central Islip, were not in First District Court in Central Islip Wednesday when the indictment was announced.