A guilt-ridden Long Island man who was hiding from his mother the fact that he had spent all of her money strangled the 88-year-old woman and then slashed his wrists in a botched suicide attempt, police said yesterday.

“He did not want her to know” that the funds were about to run out, said Nassau Homicide Squad commander, Detective Lt. John Azatta.

Azatta said James Olsen, 56, of Garden City, used a necktie to kill his Alzheimer’s-stricken mother, Ruth, early Thursday and then spent about 12 hours alone in the house with the corpse.

Olsen called cops just after 8 p.m. Thursday, after cutting his wrists. He was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was later scheduled to be arraigned at his bedside on charges of second-degree murder.

Azatta refused to say how much money was involved or how Olsen got it.

But the suspect did not live the high life with the stolen funds, a law-enforcement source said, adding, “He used it to make ends meet.”

“He must have broken down because of the stress,” said neighbor Margo Almeida, 49. “That couldn’t have been easy, taking care of a mother who has Alzheimer’s disease.”