Former Marine Steven Kraft was killed by his ex-wife and her husband, federal jury finds
WHITE PLAINS - A federal jury on Friday found a former local couple responsible for killing the wife's ex-husband, a former Marine who last lived in Marlboro.
Jamie Orsini, 38, and Nicholas Orsini, 36, were found guilty Friday of carjacking resulting in death; and participating in a conspiracy to commit carjacking, following a two-week trial before U.S. District Judge Philip M. Halpern.
They were accused of causing the death of Steven Kraft, 34, whose body has never been found.
According to the indictment against the Orsinis, public court filings and the evidence presented at trial, Jamie and Nicholas Orsini plotted the murder of Jamie's ex-husband, Kraft, in 2020.
According to prosecutors, they planned a sophisticated cover-up involving the use of burner phones, the movement of Kraft's car to a different city, and the destruction and disposal of all physical evidence. They purchased items including a 1,000-square-foot tarp and a full-body coverall to allow them to commit the murder and dispose of evidence, prosecutors said.
The Orsinis repeatedly practiced dry runs for moving Kraft's car, and purchased a burner phone to use without law enforcement being able to trace it to them.
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On April 28, 2020, after Kraft had dropped off his two daughters - whom he shared with Jamie Orsini - at the Orsinis' home in Beacon, the Orsinis killed Kraft and took his car and cellphone.
Nicholas Orsini then drove Kraft's car into Newburgh and left it in a high-crime neighborhood, got rid of Kraft's cellphone and used the burner phone to call a taxi to bring him back to Beacon. He threw the burner phone out before getting into the taxi.
After the murder, the Orsinis managed to destroy or dispose of evidence, including Kraft's body, by creating large homemade incinerators. They also bought a new burner phone to use when they repeatedly drove to and from upstate New York.
Jamie Orsini sent multiple text messages to make it look like she believed Kraft was still alive. When she spoke with police, she professed ignorance, but kept hinting that Kraft might have gone to Newburgh after leaving her home, and that something might have happened to him there, prosecutors said.
The carjacking resulting in death count carries a maximum penalty of life in prison. The conspiracy to commit carjacking carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison. Sentencing has not yet been scheduled.
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"For more than four years, Kraft's family has waited for justice," Damian Williams, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a statement released by his office. "Their wait is now over. With its verdict, the jury has now held Kraft's ex-wife, Jamie Orsini, and her husband Nicholas Orsini responsible for that murder and subsequent cover-up."
Kraft's father, Dean Kraft, traveled from his home in Illinois to attend the trial. He was overjoyed with the verdict.
"It's just good to know that justice has been served," Kraft said. "I'm extremely happy with all the work done by the prosecutors and the state police."
Bruce D. Koffskey, an attorney for Nicholas Orsini, and Rachel Martin, an attorney for Jamie Orsini, could not immediately be reached for comment.
Mike Randall covers breaking news for the Times Herald-Record and the Poughkeepsie Journal. Reach him at mrandall@th-record.com.
This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Orsini couple found guilty in former Marine Steven Kraft's death
