Inset, left to right: Lenard White (Hernando County Sheriff’s Office), Isabella Scavelli (Hernando High School) and Sheldon Robinson (HCSO). Background: The area in Florida where Robinson killed Scavelli (WTVT).
A 37-year-old Florida man faces a life sentence after a federal jury found him guilty of masterminding the murder of a 17-year-old high school student. The crime was intended to silence her from testifying against him in an alleged sexual assault case.
On Monday, the jury in Florida’s Middle District convicted Lenard White on several felony charges, including premeditated first-degree murder and murder-for-hire, for orchestrating the killing of Isabella Scavelli, authorities announced.
White’s cousin, 22-year-old Sheldon Robinson, was also convicted on similar charges after accepting $6,000 from White to carry out the fatal shooting. Robinson shot Scavelli in front of her mother, who was gravely injured in the incident, according to prosecutors.
The events unfolded on February 6, 2023, when Scavelli and her mother reported White to the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office, accusing him of sexually assaulting the teenager, as detailed in a news release.
“The following day, Sheldon Robinson approached their residence and knocked on the door,” prosecutors described. “Upon the door being opened, Robinson unleashed a hail of bullets at Scavelli and her mother, resulting in Scavelli’s death. A bullet struck Scavelli in the back as she attempted to flee for help. Although Scavelli’s mother was hit multiple times, she survived the attack, collapsing to witness her daughter’s tragic death.”
Authorities revealed that White had orchestrated the fatal shooting, strategically taking an unplanned trip to Georgia soon after the sexual assault report was filed, in an attempt to create an alibi for the murder.
Investigators said they obtained and executed more than 70 search warrants in connection with the case, allowing them to create a “step-by-step blueprint for how Robinson killed [Scavelli].”
Messages from Robinson’s phone showed him soliciting the assistance of others to help him with “a clean-up job.” After telling his potential co-conspirators about the job, he also sent a video showing himself “displaying currency and cocaine, both of which he had received from White as payment,” prosecutors wrote in court documents.
Six months after Scavelli was gunned down, authorities searched Robinson’s home for a second time, recovering the handgun used in the murder, which was dug up from a wooded area behind his house.
As the case continued, authorities said both White and Robinson “repeatedly attempted to hinder” the investigation by “disposing of evidence, tampering with witnesses, obstructing justice, and making false statements to law enforcement.”
“The two also discussed plans at having another witness against them killed, just as they did [Scavelli],” prosecutors wrote in the release.
A third defendant, Keshawn Woods, was recruited by Robinson to assist in the attack and has already pleaded guilty to his role in Scavelli’s murder. A date for his sentencing hearing has not been set.
White and Robinson are currently scheduled to appear for their sentencing hearing on Jan. 30, 2026, records show. They both face a mandatory penalty of life in federal prison.
