Lawyer Stephen Cozzi vanished in the spring of 2023 from his Florida company, disappeared in the men's bathroom, and was never seen again.
More than three years later, plastic surgeon Tomasz Kosowski, who is accused of murdering Cozzi, removing his body from the tower, and dumping his bones into an Swamp garbage can, has been found guilty of murder and facing the death penalty.
According to media outlets like the Tampa Bay Times, Bay News 9 and ABC News, Kosowski, 47, was found guilty of murder in the first instance for the death of the 41-year-old prosecutor on March 21, 2023. The system has never been recovered.
In accordance with court documents obtained by Fox 13, Kosowski claimed to have been unhappy with Cozzi, a Blanchard Law attorney representing his former boss and Laufer Institute for Plastic Surgery, who he had sued in 2019 for alleged billing errors.
According to Deputy Attorney Nathan Vonderheide," The enormous sum of evidence in this case shows that he had an addiction, that he prepared himself, that he had a plan, that he carried it out, and that he murdered him," according to ABC News.
WILD: Florida plastic surgeon Tomasz Kosowski, 47, who is representing himself in his death-penalty murder trial, requests a physical courtroom demonstration as he fights allegations that he murdered attorney Steven Cozzi, 41, inside a Largo law office on March 21, 2023, and? pic.twitter.com/YYhd9Ka9jc
Vonderheide continued," This man murdered Steven Cozzi, and he brutally murdered him, leaving his body everywhere. "
Cozzi's father testified at the start of the trial that he was concerned about the controversy that the complaint had sparked.
He claimed that he had purchased pepper gas from Cozzi and that he had been encouraged to use protection if he needed to meet with Kosowski, who, according to the press, called him canalla during a sworn declaration in January 2023.
According to Bay News 9, Kosowski allegedly harassed Cozzi at his house and at the attorney's office for weeks before the murder. Additionally, they showed the prosecutor a picture of Kosowski's security leaving with a cart carrying his Toyota Tundra the day Cozzi disappeared.
According to a sworn declaration of probable cause obtained by People, Kosowski's biometric was found in the office building's rest room, which is typically not accessible to the public.
According to the prosecution, investigators in Tarpon Springs put a tracking attempt at his home, where they discovered evidence that included Cozzi's blood. He was detained during a traffic power operation days later and charged with first-degree murder in connection with the murder.
Kosowski argued that it was "physically difficult" for Cozzi, who weighed roughly 86 kilograms, to climb his truck, and that the murder trial was a "physically difficult" outcome.
Kosowski's area of expertise included breast reconstruction, body contouring, and cosmetic plastic surgery, according to his WebMD page.
This week's transition to the dedication phase of the sentence is anticipated to start. Without the possibility of a provisional transfer or the death sentence, he faces a life sentence. The death sentence was requested by the attorney.
