Two teenagers from Maryland, both 18 years old, are facing potential life sentences following accusations of a brutal attack on a 67-year-old garden shop owner. Jonah Michael Poole and Kylee Alyssa Dakes have been charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and arson in connection with the death of Edward Stephen Koza, as reported by the Anne Arundel County Police.
On the evening of May 24, police and fire personnel were called to a vehicle fire at the Tropic Bay Water Gardens business in Davidsonville, near Annapolis. After extinguishing the flames, they discovered Koza’s body, bound and with his mouth sealed with duct tape. The presence of a gasoline odor and a melted container nearby led authorities to conclude that the fire was intentionally set.
Investigations led to the identification of Poole and Dakes as suspects. Authorities believe that Koza was alone in his shop around 5:30 p.m. on the day of the incident when the teenagers attacked him. Following a struggle, it is alleged that the pair tied up Koza and placed him in his car. They then drove around with him in the vehicle, eventually stopping at a gas station around 9 p.m.
Surveillance footage reportedly showed a woman, believed to be Dakes, exiting the passenger seat of Koza’s car and entering the gas station. The driver, thought to be Poole, was seen wearing a Bass Pro Shops hat and a flannel shirt. The woman handed the clerk two $5 bills, suspected to have been used to purchase the gasoline for the fatal fire.
The pair then allegedly returned to Koza’s business and set the car alight with Koza still inside. A Bass Pro Shops hat was found near the burned vehicle. Surveillance footage from the Bass Pro Shops store earlier in the day reportedly showed Poole purchasing the hat and flannel shirt.
According to charging documents obtained by Baltimore Fox affiliate WBFF, the suspected motive for the crime is robbery. Poole had previously worked at Koza’s store for a couple of weekends the previous year.
A 911 caller reported seeing something being thrown into the vehicle before it ignited. Poole and Dakes, who were due to graduate from Southern High School this week, are currently being held at the Anne Arundel County Jail without bond. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 25. Meanwhile, authorities are working to verify a video of a man in a flannel shirt setting a vehicle on fire.