An Elmont man was sentenced today to 25 years to life in prison for murdering his girlfriend inside her penthouse apartment in Mineola in July 2022.
Mark Small, 57, was found guilty of murder in the second degree and criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree. He was convicted on Sep. 26 of this year after a jury trial before Judge Helene Gugerty.
Small shot his girlfriend, Marivel Estevez, with a handgun once in the arm and once in the head, and then fled in Estevez’s car with her dog between the evening of July 28 and the morning of July 29, 2022.
Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly announced Small’s sentencing today.
“Mark Small shot and killed his girlfriend inside her own apartment, and today’s sentence reflects the seriousness of this callous and senseless act of violence,” Donnelly said.
“Rather than letting her leave New York to start a new job in a new state, this defendant decided that if he couldn’t have her, no one could. We hope that this defendant’s sentencing brings a measure of closure to all those who are affected by Marivel’s tragic loss,” she added.
Estevez worked in management at the Allure Mineola apartment complex on Old Country Road. She lived in a top-floor apartment.
After she failed to show up to work on July 30, an employee of hers called the police for a wellness check. Estevez was found dead on her bed by responding Nassau County Police Department officers.
Small was arrested on Aug. 2, 2022, at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset by members of the Nassau County police department.
At the time of his arrest, he was being treated at the hospital after being hit by a car while chasing after Estevez’s dog, who had escaped from him on the Long Island Expressway.
