Brooklyn Man Confesses in Slaying of "Factotum" Actress

UPDATED
A construction worker was jailed without bail Tuesday after confessing to the slaying of an actress left hanging from a shower rod in the bathroom of a Manhattan apartment.

Diego Pillco, 19, made written and videotaped statements implicating himself in the slaying of Adrienne Shelly, Assistant District Attorney Marit Delozier said Tuesday at Pillco’s arraignment in state Supreme Court. Pillco was then ordered held without bail pending a Thursday hearing.

“He said he fought with the victim, tied a sheet around her neck and dragged her to the bathroom and hung her from the shower rod,” Delozier said at the brief hearing. “This is an exceptionally egregious case.”

Shelly, who appeared in the movie “Factotum” with Matt Dillon last year, was renovating the Greenwich Village apartment she used as her office. Pillco, one of the workers, was one of the last people seen going into the apartment, police said.

Shelly, whose birth name was Adrienne Levine, was found last Wednesday at about 6 p.m. hanging over the bathtub. Police were hesitant to label the case a suicide, observing that no note was found and sneaker prints that did not match Shelly’s shoes were recovered from the bathtub.

Shelly, who was born in Queens and grew up on Long Island, was raising a 3-year-old daughter, Sophie, with her husband, Andy Ostroy. Her husband discovered the actress’ body in the fourth-floor apartment, where he had dropped Shelly off hours earlier.

Shelly, 40, was best known for her roles in the Hal Hartley films “The Unbelievable Truth,” in which she played Audry Hugo in 1989, and “Trust,” in which she starred as Maria Coughlin in 1990.

She worked steadily during her career in film, theater and television but later turned to writing and directing, making her directorial debut with “Sudden Manhattan” in 1996. She recently wrote and directed the film “Waitress,” starring Keri Russell and Nathan Fillion.

Also: “Factotum” web site and Adrienne Shelly IMDB Bio.

UPDATE

Statement from Andrew Ostroy, Husband of Adrienne Shelly, via PR Newswire:

NEW YORK, Nov. 6 /PRNewswire/ — “My wife’s senseless death is devastating to me, our families and friends. We are incredibly grateful to the New York City Police Department for their dedication, professionalism and tenacity in following up on every lead in this case.

“We appreciate the outpouring of support we have received. Her fans and the film community knew Adrienne as an award-winning actor, screenwriter and director, but her most enduring legacy is our wonderful daughter. To those closest to her, she was the best mother and step-mother, wife, daughter, sister and friend anyone could ask for.

“My comfort is now our young daughter and my other children who have been incredibly supportive. We hope everyone will respect that this is a difficult and private time for our family.”

FURTHER DETAILS …

From the Guardian Unlimited:

Police had been hesitant to label the case a suicide, observing that no note was found and that trainer prints that did not match Shelly’s shoes were recovered from a toilet seat.
Police said that Pillco had been working in an apartment located directly below Shelly. Under questioning, Pillco told them that Shelly had confronted him over noise emanating from the apartment and threatened to call the police. Pillco is then reported to have followed Shelley, pleading with her not to report him before grabbing her as she tried to enter her apartment. She tried to slap him away, and he responded by punching her in the head, a blow he said killed her.

Pillco is then reported to have claimed to hang the body in order to cover his tracks and make the slaying appear to be a suicide. But prosecutor Marit Delozier said there were no signs of serious head trauma. “This woman did not die from a strike to the head,” she said. “The (medical examiner) has made it crystal clear that the victim died from compression to the neck.”

POLITICIZING A TRAGEDY …

Over at The Stein Report blog, under the incendiary headline “Adrienne Shelly Killed By Illegal Alien Day Laborer”, Ben writes:

I read about this yesterday and I feel sorry for any family that has to go through this kind of tragedy. The thing is this is one tragedy that could have been avoided if the federal government enforced immigration laws on the books. Adrienne Shelly is one more victim that could have been saved if the feds were doing their job.

If this was my wife I would be filing a lawsuit against the federal government for wrongful death. This is something that could have been avoided.

There is also plenty of reader commentary — much of it less incendiary — over at Gothamist, sister site of LAist.