PUNTA GORDA, Fla. — The two people behind a murder-for-hire plot that left two men dead in rural Punta Gorda in Jan. 2024, were sentenced this week.
Court documents show that Kelly Schiano pleaded guilty on Thursday to one count of conspiracy to commit murder and was sentenced to 17 years in prison with ten years of probation.
Watch Fox 4's Alex Orenczuk report on the sentencing:
The day prior, Everett Harper pleaded no contest to the same charge and received a 12 year prison sentence with 18 years of probation, as well as a condition to provide “truthful testimony if called upon,” court documents show.
The pair are connected to a double homicide on Jan. 24, 2024, where investigators deputies responded to Schiano’s home on Trails End Drive in Punta Gorda after getting a tip from a man working in the area who said he heard gunshots.
Inside, deputies discovered the bodies of Mario Schiano, 47, and Anthony Galeotti, 44, both shot to death. Investigators later determined that Kelly Schiano, Mario’s wife, and Everett Harper, conspired to have Mario killed.
They said Galeotti was not the intended target of the plot, but happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Investigators said the motive was tied to drugs and money.
The alleged gunman in the case, Justin Casagranda, faces two counts of second-degree murder. He was arrested in Athens, Georgia, nearly a month after the killings. The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office described him as a longtime friend of the Schiano family.
Casagranda is set to stand trial in October.
