AUSTIN (KXAN) — A third man has plead guilty to the 2018 murder of Austin jeweler Ted Shaughnessy.
Johnny Leon was originally charged with capital murder, but received a 35-year prison sentence Wednesday for the lesser charge of murder.
Last week, Arieon Smith and Ted’s son, Nicolas Shaughnessy also pleaded guilty to murder for a 35 year sentence. Both of them had also originally been charged with capital murder.
Nicolas hired Leon and Smith as hitmen to kill his father. Investigators say he and his wife, Jaclyn Edison plotted to have both Ted and Nicolas’ mother, Corey Shaughnessy murdered so that they would get an inheritance.
Ted owned Gallerie Jewelers in Austin at the time. Nicolas was the sole beneficiary of $2 million in the event of his parents’ death, according to a search warrant.
Search warrants at the time of the murder said Nicolas, then 19 and living in College Station, was having financial troubles and owed his mother $30,000.
While Corey dodged bullets shot in their home, investigators say Ted was found with multiple gunshot wounds.
Edison is is also charged in connection to Ted’s murder. She’s accused of solicitation to commit capital murder. She bonded out of jail shortly after her arrest in 2018. Her next court hearing is set for June, however, she is not expected to appear in that hearing.
Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza said Leon won’t be eligible for parole for almost 20 years.
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