Man murdered ex-wife and boyfriend in St. James, Long Island, police say
SAINT JAMES, N.Y. — A Long Island man is facing murder charges after he allegedly shot his ex-wife and her boyfriend in Saint James, New York.
Daniel Coppola, 50, is charged with two counts of murder in the deaths of 50-year-old Kelly Coppola and 53-year-old Kenneth Pohlman. He pleaded not guilty.
Police allege on Wednesday night, Daniel Coppola drove to the home Kelly Coppola and Pohlman shared on Brasswood Road in Saint James, put the divorced couple's 15-year-old daughter in his car, committed the murders, then drove his daughter back to his home on Harbor Road in Head of the Harbor.
"As he's driving her, she is communicating with friends via text saying, I don't know what my father did, I don't know how my mother is," said Kevin Beyrer, commanding officer of the Suffolk County Police Homicide Squad.
Police said around 11:45 p.m., the 15-year-old called 911 from Daniel Coppola's home.
"Stating that the caller's father was trying to kill himself with a gun," Beyrer said.
Officers responded and took him into custody. He was later taken for a mental evaluation.
According to police, as that was happening, the 15-year-old's friends were trying to reach out to Kelly Coppola, and when they could not get in touch with her, they called 911 and reported a teenager had left the home on Brasswood Road with her father without her mother's knowledge. That 911 call was placed around 11:54 p.m.
When officers arrived at the home, they found Kelly Coppola and Pohlman inside, dead from gunshot wounds.
Accused gunman had previously threatened ex-wife's boyfriend, family says
Investigators could be seen towing a car and gathering guns from Daniel Coppola's home Thursday.
"Her ex-husband shot down his door, ran upstairs, shot him and her cold blank," said Tom Pohlman, Kenneth Pohlman's brother.
Pohlman's family said when he started dating Kelly Coppola, there were numerous threats from Daniel Coppola.
"From what she would say, he abused her, the ex-husband, and they were divorced," father Kenneth Pohlman Sr. said.
Pohlman was a father of three.
"Two of his children had their mother taken from them 17 years ago from cancer. Today, this maniac took their father from them. He has another child who also lost their father," Tom Pohlman said.
The Pohlman family is heartbroken.
"He was my best friend," one relative said. "He would give you the shirt off his back."
"She brought the best out of him, and he brought the best out of her. They were very happy," Kenneth Pohlman Sr. said.
According to police, Kelly Coppola did not have an order of protection, and there was one documented domestic incident from when she and Daniel Coppola were married, which was labeled non-criminal. Police said they were told the couple's divorce was contentious.
The 15-year-old daughter is currently with family members.