Peggy Nadell Murder Case: Motive, Plot, and Sentences

The Peggy Nadell murder was a 2014 contract-style killing in Valley Cottage, New York, arranged by the victim’s own daughter-in-law, Diana Nadell, to seize control of an estate worth roughly $4 million. Diana and a hired accomplice, Andrea Benson, beat, strangled, and stabbed the 80-year-old retired Xerox executive in her home. Both are now serving decades-long prison sentences, and two other women who helped with the cover-up pleaded to a misdemeanor after cooperating with prosecutors.¹

What Happened on January 25, 2014

In the early morning hours of January 25, 2014, Peggy Nadell was lured to the door of her home at 644 Andover Road by a late-night phone call. Diana Nadell and Andrea Benson then entered the house. Benson later admitted to strangling Peggy with a pocketbook strap while Diana bashed her with a hard object and stabbed her repeatedly.²

Peggy’s daughter, Susanne Nadell-Scaccio, found the body the next morning.³ Because there were no signs of forced entry, Clarkstown Police at first treated the death as a possible accident. It was reclassified as a homicide after the medical examiner identified additional traumatic injuries.⁴

Why Diana Nadell Wanted Her Mother-in-Law Dead

Prosecutors said Diana Nadell arranged the killing to reach the portion of Peggy’s roughly $4 million estate that would pass to her husband, James Nadell, when his mother died.³ Investigators said Diana had argued with Peggy over money and had reportedly been removed from her will. Police froze the victim’s funds shortly after the murder.⁵

James Nadell was not charged in connection with the plot.³

How Investigators Cracked the Case

Detectives concluded early that Peggy knew her killer. The Clarkstown Police Department worked with the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Westchester County Intelligence Unit, and other agencies.⁵ Detectives Stephen Cole-Hatchard and Earl Lorence combed through thousands of taped conversations and surveillance footage. They traced a prepaid phone call to Florida, and that trace was the break in the case.¹

On May 20, 2014, nearly four months after the killing, police arrested four women.⁴

The Roles of the Four Women

According to prosecutors, Diana Nadell, 50, of Cutler Bay, Florida, flew to Washington, D.C., on January 24, 2014, under the pretense of attending a wedding. She met Andrea Benson, 25, at the airport and offered her money to drive with her to New York and help carry out the murder.⁶

Tanisha Joyner, 26, of Washington, D.C., used Diana’s cellphone to build a false alibi, making it appear Diana was still in Washington when Peggy was killed. Elita Grant, 24, of East Long Beach, California, was accused of bringing the other women together to set the plot in motion.⁷

Diana Nadell and Benson were charged with second-degree murder and conspiracy. Joyner and Grant were charged with conspiracy to commit murder.⁴

The Jailhouse Plot to Kill Witnesses

While awaiting trial at the Orange County Jail in Goshen, Diana Nadell tried to arrange a second crime. She handed a letter to a fellow inmate, Antoinette Campbell, whom she believed was about to be deported to Jamaica. The letter, meant for Diana’s brother Peter Grant, read: “My friend will tell you what I need. My life depends on it. I don’t know how Pete but somehow you have to get it done.”²

On August 11, 2014, Diana was recorded on a jail phone call with her husband, James, trying to confirm whether her brother had received the message. Investigators from Clarkstown Police, the Rockland County District Attorney’s Office, and the Orange County Sheriff’s Department and District Attorney’s Office uncovered the scheme.⁸

A grand jury returned eight additional counts against her: two counts each of second-degree conspiracy, first-degree witness intimidation, first-degree attempted witness tampering, and second-degree criminal solicitation. The targeted witnesses were Karen Hamm-Samuel of Florida and Tanisha Joyner of Washington, D.C.²

Guilty Pleas and Sentences

Andrea Benson pleaded guilty first, entering a plea to second-degree murder in June 2014.⁶

Tanisha Joyner and Elita Grant each pleaded guilty to hindering prosecution, a misdemeanor, in exchange for cooperation. Joyner entered her plea ten days after arrest; Grant did so less than a month after hers.⁹ Prosecutor Richard Kennison Moran said “neither one had anything to do with the homicide. They helped with the cover-up and then agreed to cooperate.”¹⁰ Their willingness to testify helped pressure Diana Nadell to accept a plea.

Diana Nadell pleaded guilty in March 2015 to first-degree murder and attempted witness tampering.¹¹ On May 12, 2015, State Supreme Court Justice William Kelly sentenced her to 23 years to life for the murder, with a concurrent five-to-15-year sentence for the witness tampering scheme.¹ Justice Kelly read from a pre-sentencing report that described Diana as showing “indifference” and no remorse while trying to shift blame to her accomplice.

Benson was sentenced the same day to 20 years to life for second-degree murder. Justice Kelly said Benson’s childhood abuse and cooperation gave him “pause for thought,” but concluded: “No matter how you look at it, she agreed to murder someone for the money.”¹ Joyner and Grant later received time served and conditional discharge, each having spent about a month in jail.¹⁰

At the sentencing, Susanne Nadell-Scaccio told Diana: “You were born in paradise, and you’re going to die in hell.” She added: “You had the audacity to come back to New York and pretend to mourn after brutally strangling, bludgeoning and stabbing my mother to death and leaving me with an image that will stay with me forever.”⁶

The Estate and New York’s Slayer Rule

Diana Nadell’s conviction triggered New York’s slayer rule, a common-law doctrine that a person cannot profit from their own crime. New York courts have applied the doctrine to block a killer from inheriting indirectly through a spouse. Because James Nadell was not implicated, he was expected to inherit his share normally.¹²

Benson’s Push for a Reduced Sentence

Years after her conviction, Andrea Benson petitioned for resentencing under New York’s Domestic Violence Survivors Act, which lets certain survivors of abuse seek reduced sentences. Benson remains at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility, where Diana Nadell was also sent.¹³

Susanne Nadell-Scaccio has said she will fight the petition. “What does Andrea Benson’s domestic violence issue have to do with my mother’s murder? My mother didn’t know her,” she said. “How dare this woman think that she deserves to be let out of prison? You deserve to be where you are.”¹³ The Rockland County District Attorney’s Office has described the matter as ongoing and declined further comment.¹⁴

1
USA Today. Peggy Nadell Slaying
2
Poughkeepsie Journal. Nadell Court Appearance
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NBC New York. Peggy Nadell Murder Mother-in-Law Diana Florida Rockland Plot Witness
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CBS News New York. Daughter-in-Law, 3 Others Arrested in Stabbing Death of Rockland County Grandmother
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Rockland Times. Clarkstown Police Announce Arrest of Four Suspects in Peggy Nadell Murder
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ABC7 New York. Daughter-in-Law Who Pleaded Guilty to Murdering Peggy Nadell Sentenced
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The Journal News / lohud. Nadell Slaying Defendants Returning Rockland
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The Journal News / lohud. Diana Nadell Indicted Trying Kill Witnesses
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Patch. Nadell Killing Alibi Makers Out Time Served Sentences
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The Journal News / lohud. Nadell Joyner Eltia Grant Sentencings
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WUFT. Florida Woman Gets 23 Years in NY Killing of Mother-in-Law
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Wealth Management. Slayer Statutes in the Spotlight
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News 12 New Jersey. Peggy Nadell’s Daughter Fights Killer’s Bid for Reduced Sentence
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News 12 Bronx. Peggy Nadell’s Daughter Fights Killer’s Bid for Reduced Sentence