NORTH PORT, Fla. (Court TV) — A Florida man is behind bars without bond after police say he killed his roommate with scissors, a knife and golf clubs.
Coy Bothwell is charged with homicide. (Sarasota County Jail)
Coy Pearson Bothwell, 46, is charged with second-degree homicide in the death of Tiffany Schiessl, 32, who had been his roommate for approximately two months. Bothwell initially called 911 to report a burglary — but told a very different story when police arrived.
Bothwell initially called 911 at 11:27 a.m. on April 5 and told 911 operators that a woman had broken into his home with scissors overnight. He explained that he had delayed reporting the incident because “he was in shock.”
When officers arrived, the victim was “obviously deceased” and lying on the floor near the front door. When he spoke with officers, Bothwell admitted that Schiessl wasn’t a burglar — she was his roommate. Bothwell allegedly told police that he had brief contact with the victim when she got home before he used a kitchen knife and scissors to stab her in the head, neck and chest. Investigators said Bothwell further admitted to hitting her with golf clubs until they broke and then holding Schiessl down until she died.
The probable cause affidavit reviewed by Court TV offered no clue as to a potential motive; police did note in their report that Bothwell “did not make any statements [that] would establish that he acted in self-defense.”
Bothwell was taken to the Sarasota County Jail, where he was ordered to be held without bond pending a detention hearing on Friday.
