Two teenage lovers are accused of murdering a Maryland business owner and possibly burning him alive in his own car in a crime that shocked their small town last month, according to reports.
Jonah Poole and Kylee Dakes — 18-year-old high school seniors who are dating — were arrested in Harwood Saturday, a week after the body of Poole’s one-time boss Edward Koza’s body was found in the flaming remains of his pickup truck outside his gardening supply store.
The 67-year-old had been violently beaten over the head and his hands and mouth had been bound and taped, investigators discovered after dousing the flames. Cops believe Koza was assaulted while inside the store, Tropic Bay Water Gardens — where Poole worked briefly a year ago, according to Fox 45 — before the pair forced him into the back of his pickup.
Investigators also found a discarded Bass Pro Shops hat at the scene, and after canvassing surveillance footage from nearby businesses, got a hit when they saw Poole wearing a similar cap at a nearby gas station and driving Koza’s truck.
Poole was with his girlfriend Dakes at the station the evening of the murder, footage showed, and the two were seen smiling as they bought gasoline police believe was used to torch the car.
And Koza — possibly alive — was in the back of the truck the whole time, according to police.
The couple then returned to Tropic Bay and allegedly torched the truck, fleeing in a red Lincoln while the flames still burned, according to Fox 5.
“Caller reported it looked like someone threw something into the truck before it caught fire,” an emergency dispatcher said after a witness called in the fire to 911.
Cell phone records also place Poole at the scene of the crime, and leaving just after.
Exactly what motivated the teens to allegedly kill remains unclear, but Poole is also facing charges for a burglary at a nearby restaurant that happened just a week before Koza’s murder.
“It’s shocking. I can’t believe any 18-year-old could do such a thing,” a neighbor of Koza’s told CBS News. “Eighteen years old, just graduated high school? It just makes no sense.”
Poole and Dakes are both charged with first-degree murder, arson, and assault.
“Sad for them that they ruined their lives,” a Harwood resident told Fox 45. “But I think they deserve what they get and hopefully they get the maximum.”
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