Shraman Mitra
In a terrible incident that left the local community shocked, Raymond Kotomski was found in a lot of distress in his Pierpont, Ohio, home on August 13, 2009. Although first responders immediately had him transferred to a hospital for treatment, his condition got worse until he finally, unfortunately, passed away. ID’s ‘Betrayed: Bad Blood’ and NBC’s ‘Dateline: Something Sweet’ chronicles this death and shows how authorities launched a full-blown investigation once it was determined to be a homicide. So now, let’s delve into the details and find out more about the matter, shall we?
How Did Raymond Kotomski Die?
Raymond married Teresa Kotomski back in 2004, and their marriage was initially happy. Being divorcees, the couple settled down in their Pierpont, Ohio, home and looked forward to a better future. However, a couple of years later, Teresa lost her 21-year-old daughter to a car accident and subsequently gained custody of her grandkids. That’s when her marriage also began going downhill, and the ID show mentions that Raymond developed a drinking problem.
Thus, although the couple reportedly maintained a friendly relationship, Teresa moved out with her grandkids and refused to live with her husband. Incidentally, she sent her mother to check on Raymond on August 13, 2009, after being unable to reach him over the phone. Her mother found Raymond unresponsive yet alive inside his home and immediately contacted Teresa, who called 911. She then rode with him in the ambulance and even revealed how Raymond had admitted to taking something sweet.
Unfortunately, by the time this 65-year-old was admitted to the hospital, his organs were already shutting down. Doctors tried their best and even had him shifted to a better facility, but Raymond succumbed to his illness. An autopsy later determined the cause of death to be ethylene glycol poisoning, and the police believed it to be a homicide since this component is most commonly found in antifreeze.
Who Killed Raymond Kotomski?
The initial investigation into Raymond’s death proved quite challenging due to a lack of leads. However, once it was confirmed he had ethylene glycol in his system, officials knew they had to figure out how the antifreeze got to him. Interestingly, none of Raymond’s family members wanted to get him off life support when they had the chance, but Teresa was the only one who insisted and got it done. Moreover, although she appeared disturbed by her husband’s death, she claimed that he had told her about how he took something sweet. She also insisted on the case being one of death by suicide, a theory Raymond’s family completely refuted.
The show mentioned how Raymond’s family suspected Teresa from the very beginning and didn’t like her decision to take Raymond off life-support. Nevertheless, when officers wanted to search the victim’s house, Teresa allowed them full access and cops found a bottle of antifreeze in the establishment. The bottle did not have Raymond’s fingerprints on it — hinting at a possible homicide — but with no evidence against anyone, they were unable to make an arrest.
Eventually, Raymond’s death helped Teresa get around $200,000 from his estate, which allowed her to buy a new home. She even got a live-in boyfriend and began leading a new life. Yet, things changed once the authorities restarted their investigation in 2012. They met Teresa and informed her they were treating Raymond’s death as a homicide. This made her clamp up, and she subsequently refused to answer any question further without a lawyer. Considering her silence suspicious, the police began arming themselves with circumstantial evidence, including her search history. As a last resort, they even subjected her to a polygraph test which she failed. Thus, Teresa was arrested for murder in 2014.
Teresa Kotomski is in Prison Today
Once put on trial, Teresa insisted on her innocence and pleaded not guilty. However, the jury as well as the judge refused to side with her and instead convicted her of murder. She was hence sentenced to 15 years to life in 2015. Even today, Teresa insists that she did not kill her husband and believes that he died of untreated diabetes. However, her argument hasn’t ever been accepted or backed by evidence, so she remains incarcerated at the Dayton Correctional Institute in Montgomery County, Ohio. She will be eligible for parole in 2030.
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