Florida man paid his cousin at least $6K to kill the 17-year-old high school junior he molested
Isabella Scavelli, 17, accused Lenard White of molesting her, so he hired his cousin to kill her, prosecutors said. Courtesy of Hernando High School
A Florida man who sexually assaulted a 17-year-old girl orchestrated a shocking murder-for-hire plot, hiring his own cousin to kill the teen in her home, federal prosecutors revealed Monday. Both men are now facing life in prison.
Lenard White, 36, paid his cousin Sheldon Robinson, 21, at least $6,000 to fatally shoot high school junior Isabella Scavelli and prevent her from testifying about the 2023 sexual assault, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Florida’s Middle District.
The two were convicted on murder and conspiracy charges. Prosecutors said Robinson “fired a barrage of gunshots” when Scavelli answered her front door on February 7, 2023, killing her and wounding her mother. “The bullet that killed [Scavelli] struck her in the back as she ran away from her front door for help,” the office said. “[Her mother] was struck several times but survived. She collapsed on the ground and watched her daughter die.”
A third accomplice, Keshawn Woods, 22, had previously pleaded guilty for his role in the plot.
All three men were also charged with tampering with evidence and obstructing justice. Robinson’s mother, Janet Williams, was charged with lying to investigators in an attempt to conceal the crime.
Scavelli had reported the sexual assault to the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office just one day before she was killed. Authorities said White had publicly posted online seeking a hitman and deliberately stayed out of state at the time to try to distance himself from the murder—an effort that ultimately failed.
White and Robinson were arrested in 2023 and found guilty by a federal jury last week following a two-week trial. Officials said the pair even discussed targeting another potential witness.
The men are scheduled to be sentenced in January and each faces multiple mandatory life sentences.
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