Joseph Koenig: Teen thug charged with Alexa Bartell’s murder shared disturbing image months before rock attack
JEFERSON COUNTY, COLORADO: Joseph Koenig, one of the three teens charged in the fatal rock-throwing attack that killed 20-year-old Alexa Bartell last week, reportedly shared a disturbing photo on social media in December. The image, shared on Koenig’s Facebook page nearly four months before the rock attack, showed a motorcycle with a sticker on it that read, “JUST KILLED A WOMAN…FEELING GOOD.”
The ominous quote on the sticker reportedly became a meme after Twitch streamer and YouTuber Tommy Innit spontaneously said it while playing an online video game several years ago, the New York Post noted. It is not known if the motorcycle featured in the photo belonged to the 18-year-old. Bartell was driving home from work around 10.45 pm on April 19 when Koening, alongside Nicholas "Mitch" Karol-Chik and Zachary Kwak, hurled a rock towards the former’s vehicle at Indiana Street near the Rocky Mountain Arsenal. The rock smashed into the windshield of Bartell’s car and gave her injuries that ultimately claimed her life.
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The death of Alexa Bartell: 3 teens arrested after woman killed by rock thrown into her car
Joseph Koenig was prone to ‘destructive behavior’
Even before his role in the fatal rock-throwing attack, Koenig was reportedly known for his erratic behavior, as per his neighbors and friends. One of his friends, Joseph Bopp, told authorities that Koenig was prone to “destructive behavior” and liked “causing chaos,” CPR News reported from an affidavit.
A neighbor who knew Koenig also told CBS News Colorado that the news of the teen’s arrest “wasn’t a shock.” “There had been discussion and concerns in the neighborhood for actions he had taken in his past,” she told the outlet without detailing other incidents. Meanwhile, police said Koenig’s father, Mark Edwin, was also arrested this week after trying to prevent authorities from interviewing his son about the incident, KDVR reported.
Joseph Koenig has been charged with murder
Koenig, along with his friends Karol-Chik and Kwak, were arrested and charged with first-degree murder with extreme indifference for causing the tragic death of Bartell. “This was an extremely reckless and irresponsible situation that the defendant was involved in that, unfortunately, cost the life of a very innocent and very young woman in this case,” prosecutor Padraic Emerine said in a statement.
After the incident, the three teenagers reportedly went back to the scene of the accident to capture a photo of Bartell’s vehicle as a form of “memento,” according to the Daily Mail. The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said the suspects had loaded up on rocks at a Walmart earlier in the night to take part in the dangerous act and allegedly launched rocks at several other vehicles that night.
Bartell was reportedly speaking to a friend on phone when the massive rock smashed through her windshield and took her life. The friend was worried when Bartell’s line suddenly went silent and tracked her down using the phone’s location. Bartell’s body was found in her car off the side of the road in a field. Koenig, Karol-Chik, and Kwak are reportedly held without bond and are scheduled to return to court on May 3.