Man killed woman with baseball bat, chopped up body: Cops
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Inset: Donald Coffel (Groton City Police Department). Screenshot: Colonel Ledyard Cemetery (WFSB/YouTube).

A Connecticut man allegedly beat a woman to death with a baseball bat over $200 in cocaine, then lived with her body in their apartment for a week-and-a-half before he dismembered her, put her torso in a suitcase and rolled it to a nearby cemetery.

Donald Coffel stands accused of murder in the death of 58-year-old Suzanne Wormser in the city of Groton. According to a probable cause arrest affidavit posted to local CBS affiliate WFSB, Groton city police began investigating on March 19 when a passerby smelled a foul odor from a suitcase at the entrance of Colonel Ledyard Cemetery. The caller told cops he had noticed the suitcase near some trash cans and became curious about what was inside. When he walked up to the suitcase, it smelled as if something was rotting inside, so he called police.

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Cops got on scene and opened the suitcase to find the torso of a woman’s body that was missing the head and other extremities. Police on April 11 posted a press release on its Facebook page about the death along with an FBI tip line. Wormser’s sister called in to say she hadn’t heard from her in months and she didn’t call to wish her a happy birthday, which was unlike her. She gave cops Wormser’s address and detectives went to check out the apartment in the 100 block of Allen Street, which happens to be less than 1,000 feet from the cemetery.

Officers also learned that Coffel had lived with her for a time. Neighbors told cops they hadn’t seen Wormser in months and Coffel was in the hospital. Cops entered the home and it was evident there had been a crime committed, the affidavit said. There was blood on the walls, rugs, furniture and clothing. Investigators also found a baseball bat hidden behind a bookcase. On the bat, there appeared to be dried blood and strands of brown hair matted on it, according to the cops.

Detectives went to the hospital to speak with Coffel, who was receiving treatment for pancreatic cancer. During a noncustodial interview, Coffel explained that he used to be Wormser’s neighbor before he moved to Arizona for a few months to live near his sister. That didn’t work out, so he moved back to Groton. Since he didn’t have anywhere else to live, Wormser allowed him to live with her starting in late November. He told cops Wormser had drug and mental health problems, and he didn’t particularly like her, but he tolerated her since she was allowing him to live in the apartment.

Coffel said he had back surgery in late December and stayed in the hospital before returning home in late January. He said she was there when he came home, but later left. Cops noted in the affidavit he “seemed to settle on the idea of the victim going missing between January and February when he came back from a hospital visit.” Coffel allegedly said he didn’t know where she went and it wasn’t unusual for her to leave for a day or two at a time and return.

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