(ASHTABULA, Ohio) -- Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine and Ashtabula County Sheriff William Johnson announced today that, following a joint investigation by the Ashtabula County Sheriff’s Office and the Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), an Ohio woman is now charged with murder in connection with the poisoning death of her husband in 2009.
This week, an Ashtabula County Grand Jury indicted Teresa Kotomski, 53, on one count of Murder and one count of Contaminating a Substance for Human Consumption.
Teresa Kotomski is accused of killing Raymond Kotomski, 65, who died on August 16, 2009, several days after he was found unconscious inside his Pierpont, Ohio, home. An autopsy found that he died as a result of complications from ethylene glycol toxicity.
"Ethylene glycol is most commonly found in antifreeze, and in looking at the evidence gathered in connection with this case, we do not believe the victim purposely ingested the substance," said Attorney General DeWine. "Officers and prosecutors have put a tremendous amount of work into this investigation, and they should be commended for the hard work and dedication that has led to the Grand Jury returning this indictment."
"We are very appreciative of the efforts of everyone involved in this investigation, especially the work and dedication of Detective Taylor Cleveland and Sergeant Joe Niemi who worked the case since 2009, along with Special Agent Supervisor Mark Kollar with BCI who was later requested to assist in the investigation," said Ashtabula County Sheriff's Lieutenant Terry Moisio.
Kotomski's case was featured by the Attorney General's Office in September 2012 when Attorney General DeWine announced the creation of his office's Ohio Unsolved Homicides Initiative. The initiative was developed to expand the public online database of Ohio's unsolved murder cases and assist local law enforcement in identifying suspects in unsolved homicides.
"We were able to gather some new information as a result of highlighting this case," said Attorney General DeWine. "This case goes to show that families should not give up hope that a suspect will be identified in the death of a loved one, even if several years have passed."
Prosecutors with the Attorney General's Office will prosecute the case.
There are currently 1,838 cases listed in the Ohio Attorney General's Ohio Unsolved Homicides Database. Those with tips on any unsolved homicide can submit the information through the website or by calling 855-BCI-OHIO.
Additional Resources:
Indictment (PDF)
Ohio Attorney General's Ohio Unsolved Homicides Database
Raymond Kotomski Ohio Unsolved Homicides Database Entry
Media Contacts:
Dan Tierney: 614-466-3840
Jill Del Greco; 614-466-3840