DOJ Secures Lengthy Prison Sentences for Individuals Involved in Brutal Murder of Felton Woman

Two individuals have been sentenced in connection with a missing person investigation going back to 2020–which then became murder case that crossed state lines. The sentences follow the disappearance and murder of 41-year-old Jennifer Leyanna of Felton, Delaware. According to the Delaware Department of Justice, on October 9th, 2020, now 43-year-old Leonard Church of Henderson, Maryland beat, bound, suffocated, and ultimately killed Leyanna at a home in Hartly based on a minor dispute over property. 41-year-old Esther Wright of Clayton, Delaware was present during the brutal murder and assisted with binding Leyanna. Church, along with Wright, then transported Leyanna’s body to the Henderson property, which belonged to one of Church’s family members. Church then buried Leyanna’s remains with Wright present.  

On August 28th, Church and Wright– AKA Esther Hurtado-Chavez–were sentenced in Kent County Superior Court. Church was sentenced to 90 years of prison, suspended after 65 years, and followed by three years of descending levels of probation for Murder Second Degree. Wright was sentenced to 30 years in prison, suspended after 25 years, and followed by three years of descending levels of probation for convictions of Kidnapping First Degree and Conspiracy First Degree. 

Additional Information from the Delaware Department of Justice:

In November 2020, family members reported to Delaware State Police (DSP) that Jennifer Leyanna was missing.  After substantial efforts by both the Troop 3 Major Crimes Unit and the State Police Homicide Unit to locate Leyanna, it became increasingly clear that her disappearance was not voluntary. In January 2021, detectives identified a residence on Route 8 in Hartly, Delaware as a crime scene, and DSP’s Troop 3 Evidence Detection Unit executed a search warrant there. It took another year and a break in the investigation for authorities to locate Leyanna’s remains buried in the backyard of a residence in Henderson, Maryland. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Queen Anne’s and Caroline County Sheriff’s Offices, State’s Attorneys’ offices in Queen Anne’s and Caroline County, the Maryland Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, the Delaware Division of Forensic Science, and the Delaware State Bureau of Identification assisted DSP in the investigation.