Anne Arundel County police have confirmed that the remains discovered amid a car fire in Davidsonville belonged to an Annapolis man. As FOX Baltimore reported, the victim has been identified as 67-year-old Stephen Koza. The charred vehicle was found ablaze on May 24, around 9:30 p.m., in a parking lot off of West Central Avenue, which is home to the Tropic Bay Water Gardens owned by Koza. Upon extinguishing the fire, responders located Koza's remains inside the passenger compartment of the vehicle. The investigation promptly turned to a homicide case when the manner of death was ruled intentional.
As the investigation unfolded, police charging documents painted a grisly scene. Allegedly, Koza was bound, robbed, and fatally struck with a decorative rock inside his shop. Signal fires were seemingly ignited to conceal the tragedy, with the murder suspects accused of using gasoline to burn Koza's vehicle with him inside.
According to WBALTV, arrests were made last Saturday, where police apprehended Jonah Michael Poole and Kylee Alyssa Dakes, both 18 years old from neighboring towns, at a house in Harwood. The pair is facing grave charges ranging from arson to first and second-degree murder, demonstrating the severity of their alleged actions. Poole, reportedly a Southern High School senior, was identified partially through prom pictures. His public defender contested the evidence, stating "nobody saw Mr. Poole commit murder," and emphasizing a lack of "tangible physical evidence" linking him to the crime. Nevertheless, the judge favored the prosecution's perspective, vocalizing deep concern regarding Poole's present danger to the community, as he had been previously charged with felony burglary just six days before the arson and murder.
Although definitive conclusions on Koza's cause of death remain pending, as per the medical examiner, the case was firmly classified as homicide.
