A Pinellas judge convicted Kosowski of first-degree murder.

A bench conviction is a verdict on guilt. It is not a sentence. On Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026, Pinellas County Judge Joseph Bulone found Dr. Tomasz Kosowski, 47, a former Tarpon Springs plastic surgeon, guilty of first-degree murder in the killing of attorney Steven Cozzi, after a bench trial in which Kosowski waived a jury and represented himself. The penalty phase is still ahead: life without parole or the death penalty are the options reported, and no sentence has been imposed.

Cozzi's body has never been found. Prosecutors presented a no-body case. The reported proof included blood in a law-office restroom, surveillance and Flock camera evidence, DNA, and cellphone pings. Cozzi vanished around a March 2023 scheduled teleconference. Prosecutors alleged Kosowski attacked him at the law firm and disposed of the body. A landfill search did not recover remains. Those are the items the State put before the judge. A missing body is not a missing verdict. Wednesday's finding is the verdict on first-degree murder. It is not a sentence.

Kosowski waived a jury and represented himself. The waiver put guilt on Judge Bulone. It was not a plea. He maintained his innocence in closing. A closing is argument. The conviction is the verdict the court entered. The penalty phase, including a Spencer hearing, is still ahead, and a sentence has not been imposed. Life without parole or death is the exposure the reporting describes. Neither term has been chosen. Outlets have not fixed one sentencing date. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.