LI man gets 25-to-life for murdering diplomat's wife

A Medford man has been sentenced to 25 years to life after admitting he fatally stabbed the wife of a State Department diplomat.

Robert Shiavo pleaded guilty in March to murder and was sentenced on Monday.

Homicide detectives said Nancy McKinley was visiting a friend in Bellport in March 2009 when Schiavo broke into the home. He stabbed the 61-year-old woman with a kitchen knife after noticing a light on in her bedroom.

McKinley was the wife of Brunson McKinley, a longtime State Department official who served as a U.S. ambassador to Haiti. He also was the U.S. humanitarian coordinator in Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1995-1998.

Nancy McKinley was a retired librarian. Her relatives declined to comment after the sentencing.