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Man convicted of Greenport killing sentenced to 25 years

Frank Schiavoni remembers his daughter Shelly as an animal lover and an amazing friend.

“In July 2017, my daughter was taken from me. Not from an accident or an illness, not from drugs or alcohol,” he said. “It was from the actions of Jaime DeLeon-Tino who took her from me, her mother, her brothers and sisters.”

Mr. DeLeon-Tino was sentenced Thursday morning to 25 years in prison and five years post-release supervision. The sentencing was nearly one year after 27-year-old Michelle Schiavoni was killed. It was the first murder in Greenport in over two decades.

Ms. Schiavoni was found strangled in her Greenport home on July 10, 2017. Mr. DeLeon-Tino was arrested later that day on Osborn Avenue in Riverhead.

He originally plead not guilty to second-degree murder, but in April, he plead guilty to a count of manslaughter with intent to cause physical injury.

“Michelle was a kind and loving person, and treated people better than most deserved,” her father said in his victim impact statement read in front of Judge Richard Ambro. “She saw beauty where others could not.”

Family members gathered in the Riverhead courthouse, including her sister Marissa Aubin, brother Alex Carlson, and aunt Casey Martin, to voice their anger.

Ms. Aubin expressed sadness over the fact that her three children would only have memories left of their Aunt Shelly, and how she will no longer be in their lives.

“He should be ashamed of himself,” she said of Mr. DeLeon-Tino, 24. “I hope he carries that shame and misery with him every day he has left on this earth.”

Ms. Martin, Ms. Schiavoni’s aunt, said that with their only six-year difference in age, they were more like sisters.

“Michelle was so accepting of Jaime DeLeon-Tino,” she said. “She didn’t deserve to have his hands around her neck and have her life taken from her.”

Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Creighton read a letter from Ms. Schiavoni’s mother, Terra Carlson of Southold, who was unable to attend the sentencing. She urged the judge to remember the horrific act of Mr. DeLeon-Tino when it comes time for his parole hearing.

“This man climbed on top of my daughter and looked into her horrified eyes,” Ms. Carlson said in her letter. “Please do not grant him freedom.”

“Like many people with adult children, we drifted apart but we were working on our relationship when she was killed,” she added. “Her siblings and her father are devastated.”

Ms. Creighton said that this plea “in no way diminishes the horrific crime for the family,” but instead saves them the trauma of having to relive that day in trial.

When given a chance to comment, Mr. DeLeon-Tino declined to say anything to the family.

He was previously found to be in the United States illegally from El Salvador. Judge Ambro said that he will be deported after his prison sentence.

“I hope if you ever get back into this country, you’re jailed for the rest of your life,” Judge Ambro said.

Family members declined to comment outside court following the sentencing, saying they had nothing left to say.

Judge Ambro added during the sentencing: “I am horrified. This appalling crime is hard to fathom. How you can do this to a person described as your friend? The pain conveyed here is palpable in this room.”

Photo caption: Michelle Schiavoni, left, was killed last July by Jaime DeLeon-Tino, right. 

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