A 19-year-old Biddeford woman will spend eight years behind bars for nearly killing her brother’s fiancée in Saco.
On Monday, Ariana Tito pleaded guilty to elevated aggravated assault with the use of a firearm and two counts of tampering with a witness. The attempted murder was dropped as part of a plea deal.
A judge sentenced Tito to 15 years with all but eight years suspended followed by four years of probation.
Tito is the sister of Lorenze Labonte, who was charged with the murder of Ahmed Sharif in Biddeford in November 2023. Sharif was Tito’s boyfriend.
Tito shot her brother’s 32-year-old fiancée the morning after her brother’s arrest. The victim suffered a gunshot wound to her cheek that exited her neck.
According to court documents, Tito shot the woman so she would keep quiet about her brother’s case. The victim’s friend reportedly told police she said Labonte had shot “Ari’s boyfriend.”
The Portland Press Herald reported Tito also tried to convince her then-10-year-old sister, who also witnessed the Biddeford shooting, to lie to police.
Tito was arrested in December 2023 in Brooklyn, New York.
