An unusual trial is underway for a Florida plastic surgeon, accused of murdering an attorney he’d opposed in court and disposing of his body in a dumpster before prosecutors say it ended up at the landfill.
asserted
it → accuse → landfill
Clad in an orange jail jumpsuit, Dr. Tomasz Kosowski, 47, is representing himself in court as he faces a first-degree murder charge with the possibility of the death penalty.
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he → clothe → penalty
He’s waived his right to a jury – the judge presiding over the Pinellas County trial is set to decide the doctor’s fate.
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judge → waive → fate
Kosowski was arrested in March 2023 in connection with the disappearance of attorney Steven Cozzi.
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Kosowski → arrest → Cozzi
He has remained in jail and insists he is innocent.
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he → remain → jail
The two men met through a legal dispute.
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men → meet → dispute
Cozzi had worked on a civil lawsuit beginning in 2019 involving money allegedly owed to Kosowski for work he’d done tied to personal injury cases.
uncertain
he → work → cases
Cozzi helped represent the corporate clients Kosowski was suing.
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Kosowski → represent → clients
During years of litigation, Kosowski developed a hostile attitude toward Cozzi, according to court records.
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Kosowski → develop → records
He blamed Cozzi for his problems in the case and demanded that the attorney be removed as defense counsel, records show.
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records → blame → counsel
"He made a bunch of completely unwarranted, inappropriate accusations about Steve throughout the litigation," said Jake Pillsbury, an attorney who worked with Cozzi on the case.
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who → make → case
Cozzi had told others that, during a deposition, Kosowski approached him in a restroom and "called him a scumbag" and "that he [Kosowski] was going to win," Pillsbury said in court.
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Pillsbury → tell → court
Those close to Cozzi began to worry about his safety.
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Those → begin → safety
Cozzi’s husband, Michael Montgomery, had suggested arranging for "some kind of on-site security," if Cozzi had to meet with Kosowski again.
uncertain
Cozzi → suggest → Kosowski
On March 21, 2023, Cozzi and Kosowski both were scheduled to attend a teleconference hearing at 10 a.m.
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Cozzi → schedule → a.m.
Before that, it was a normal Tuesday morning, Montgomery said.
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Montgomery → say → that
Cozzi brought him his morning coffee and they had a short conversation before he left for work.
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he → bring → work
That was the last time he’d see him.
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he → see → him
About 10 minutes before the meeting, Cozzi left his phone, keys, wallet, and other items on his desk and went to the office restroom.
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Cozzi → leave → restroom
He never showed up for the scheduled teleconference.
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He → show → teleconference
Later, Cozzi’s boss entered the restroom and found spattered blood, court records show.
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records → enter → blood
Security footage from the day Cozzi disappeared shows a subject arriving in a silver Toyota Tundra around 8:30 a.m.
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subject → disappear → Tundra
The prosecution alleges it was Kosowski.
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it → allege → ?
A man wearing dark gloves entered the building where Cozzi worked carrying a box "large enough to conceal a human body," according to investigators.
uncertain
Cozzi → wear → investigators
At 10:22 a.m., the same man exited the building pulling a wagon covered with a reddish orange blanket.
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man → exit → blanket
The man could be seen struggling with the weight of the cart while pulling it to the truck, records show.
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records → see → truck
That day, the Tundra was driven to Kosowski’s home in Tarpon Springs, Florida, videos pieced together from multiple surveillance cameras showed, according to court records.
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videos → drive → records
On the way, the truck passed a Flock camera that captured an image of "a red bag or blanket in a cart that appeared to contain what resembles a human body located in the bed of the truck," according to arrest records.
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what → pass → records
Two days later, investigators arrived at Kosowski’s home with a search warrant and found the Tundra in the garage with blood in the truck bed, on the driver’s side headrest, on the driver’s side floorboard and on the garage floor.
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investigators → arrive → floor
Cozzi’s DNA was found in the Tundra and Kosowski’s garage floor, court records show.
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records → find → floor
In the search of Kosowski’s vehicles, investigators found a ballistic vest with a "substantial amount" of blood on it.
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investigators → find → it
They also found one iPhone and a "burner phone"––the term for an inexpensive, prepaid device meant to be discarded.
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They → find → device
Law enforcement officials also found a vest meant to be worn by a medical first responder, sheriff's office patches, a foldable bike, a gas can, $282,000 in cash, two passports and black, industrial-sized garbage bags.
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officials → find → cash
Investigators also found a black duffel that the prosecution has called "a murder bag."
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prosecution → find → that
The bag also contained a syringe, a needle and a vial of succinylcholine, a paralytic drug.
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bag → contain → succinylcholine
It was labeled in a way that connected it to Kosowski’s plastic-surgery office in Miami.
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that → label → Miami
Surprising maneuvers caught on video
After Kosowski was arrested, police informed him they’d be searching his body to collect possible DNA and fingernail clippings, and would be taking photographs of him, the prosecution said.
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prosecution → catch → him
After that, camera footage from inside the patrol car shows Kosowski struggling to bring his hands from behind his back, underneath his feet and up to his face.
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Kosowski → show → face
He then began to "meticulously suck on each of his fingers," a member of the prosecution team told the judge.
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member → begin → judge
"He's using his tongue and getting up underneath it and slurping.
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He → use → it
…and 41 more, not listed.
The Aporia
