By JOSEPH KELLARD
Orlando, 34, denied that he had persuaded Herve Jeannot, 23, of Deer Park, to shoot Robert Calabrese, 24, of Long Beach. But the jury found that Orlando had induced Calabrese, a low-level bookie, to come to an outdoor meeting on Broadway on Dec. 3, 2004, to collect the $17,000 in gambling debts that Orlando owed him.
During the trial, which began June 3, Orlando's attorney, Dennis Lemke, of Mineola, argued that reasonable doubt existed about Orlando's motives, since, Lemke claimed, his client initially made money with Calabrese. Orlando's lawyers said he was unaware that Jeannot planned to shoot Calabrese, and he didn't call the police about the murder because Jeannot had threatened to kill him and his wife if he revealed the crime.
But prosecutors pointed out that Orlando's phone records revealed that after Calabrese was shot, Orlando called a car dealership, and Assistant District Attorney Bob Hayden argued that Orlando was simply attempting to establish an alibi. Prosecutors said that Calabrese, a mortgage broker in Garden City who grew up in Long Beach, had placed bets for Orlando on football, basketball and other sports events last fall, when Orlando accumulated his $17,000 debt.
The prosecution argued that on Dec. 3, Orlando called Calabrese and agreed on a time and place to meet in Island Park, under the pretense that Orlando would pay his debt. At around 8:30 p.m., prosecutors said, Orlando lured Calabrese away from heavily traveled Austin Boulevard behind businesses on Broadway, near Georgia Avenue.
Once there, Calabrese got out of his 2003 Infiniti and approached Orlando, believing he was about to receive a payment from him. The two men met between their cars and hugged, at which point, prosecutors said, Jeannot emerged from a darkened area where he had been hiding. Orlando grabbed the victim's sweatshirt from behind and yanked it up over his head to immobilize him for Jeannot, who, the D.A. claimed, came up behind Calabrese and shot him in the back of the head with a .44 caliber Magnum revolver. Then, according to the prosecution, after Calabrese dropped to the ground, Jeannot shot him twice more in the head.
Calabrese was found hours later, face-down in the street, by passing motorists.
The jury deliberated for about a day before reaching its guilty verdict. Orlando will be sentenced by Nassau County Court Judge Dave Sullivan on July 29, and faces 25 years to life in jail. Hayden vows to seek the maximum sentence.
Orlando and Jeannot worked together at Professional Credit Services, a collection agency in East Farmingdale, where they were arrested Dec. 9 and both charged with second-degree murder. Jeannot has since been charged with first-degree murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, and awaits trial.
Orlando's lawyer, Dennis Lemke of Mineola, told the Herald, "Mr. Orlando and his family are completely disappointed in the verdict. It came as a surprise to them. It clearly was a vicious murder that Mr. Orlando was not aware at all of what the co-defendant was planning to do." Orlando added, "There will certainly be an appeal filed at the appropriate time."
Calabrese was the son of Robert Calabrese, a retired Long Beach police officer, and Kathy Calabrese, a teacher's assistant in the Long Beach School District. Robert was a standout wrestler at Kellenberg High School in the 1990s, capturing the state Catholic High School Athletic Association's 125-pound championship in 1997.
"We were ecstatic about the guilty verdict, and we're hoping [Orlando] will get the maximum," Kathy Calabrese said. "ADA Bob Hayden handled the case very well, and Nassau County Homicide Squad did a phenomenal job."
Kathy described her son as a man who never hurt anyone and never would. "We didn't get our son back, but justice was served," she said.
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