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Left inset: Jonah Michael Poole. Right inset: Kylee Alyssa Dakes. Middle inset: Edward Koza (Anne Arundel Police Department). Background: Tropic Bay Water Gardens parking lot in Maryland where Poole and Dakes lit Koza”s car on fire with him still inside, cops say (WBAL).
A Maryland teenager has confessed to a chilling crime involving the murder of his former employer, who was tragically killed when his car was set ablaze while he was trapped inside.
Nineteen-year-old Jonah Michael Poole admitted guilt on Wednesday after facing charges of first-degree murder related to the death of Edward Koza, aged 67. Both Poole and his partner, Kylee Alyssa Dakes, also 19, were implicated in an attack on Koza at his place of work. The pair allegedly restrained Koza, gagged him with duct tape, and placed him in a vehicle they subsequently ignited.
The couple was slated for a trial in June, but Poole’s guilty plea altered the course of the proceedings.
As previously covered by Law&Crime, the authorities responded to a report of a car engulfed in flames at the Tropic Bay Water Gardens in Davidsonville, Maryland, on the evening of May 24, 2025. Once the fire was under control, Koza’s bound body was discovered inside the vehicle. Nearby, a charred gasoline canister and a discarded Bass Pro Shops cap suggested arson.
According to reports obtained by Washington, D.C., media, Poole and Dakes arrived at Koza’s establishment around 5:30 p.m. on the day of the incident, allegedly assaulting and binding him before forcing him into his car. Surveillance footage from a nearby gas station captured Koza’s vehicle with Poole at the wheel, identifiable by his Bass Pro Shops hat and flannel shirt. Dakes was seen exiting the passenger side to purchase gasoline with two $5 bills, which police suspect were used to fuel the deadly fire.
Police said Poole and Dakes returned to Tropic Bay Water Gardens, the business owned by Koza, where they parked the car and set it on fire with Koza still alive inside.
Further investigation revealed that Poole worked at Koza’s store for a couple of weekends the year before. Police believed the motivation behind the attack was robbery.
Poole entered his guilty plea on Wednesday and is scheduled to be sentenced on June 26. Dakes pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and is scheduled to appear in court on April 28. She remains in custody at the Anne Arundel County Jail.