Plastic Surgeon Found Guilty of Murder in Cozzi Case

Pinellas County Judge Joseph Bulone found plastic surgeon Tomasz Kosowski guilty of the 2023 murder of Largo attorney Steven Cozzi on September 23, 2026. Bulone delivered the verdict after a week of testimony, taking 15 minutes to reach his decision. Kosowski, who represented himself and waived a jury, allowed Bulone to solely decide the outcome.

Cozzi's family and friends filled three rows in the gallery, many wearing bowties to honor him. Cozzi's mother, Lois, wore a red polka-dotted bowtie, and his husband, Michael Montgomery, wore maroon. They sighed collectively as the verdict was read, with Lois Cozzi comforting Montgomery, who sobbed. Kosowski, in orange jail clothes, remained impassive.

Prosecutors presented forensic and digital evidence linking Kosowski to the crime, though Cozzi's body was never found. Assistant State Attorney Nathan Vonderheide argued Kosowski "systematically and methodically" planned the murder. Evidence included Kosowski's phone connecting to the law firm's Wi-Fi on days with no scheduled meetings and a gray Toyota Tundra, sold to Kosowski by a witness, seen entering the law firm's parking lot on March 21, 2023, the day Cozzi vanished. The firm is located near the downtown St. Petersburg waterfront.

The state asked Bulone to impose a death sentence. After arguments on aggravating factors, the judge ruled the state proved two of three: the killing was for financial gain and committed in a cold, calculated, and premeditated manner. Bulone could not prove the killing was particularly heinous without a body. Kosowski, 47, did not argue for a life sentence. Bulone will issue his sentence after a hearing next month.