Christopher Koller, 39, of Piscataway, made his first appearance in court in Middlesex County on Thursday.
NEW BRUNSWICK -- The Piscataway man accused of killing a 31-year-old Raritan woman Tuesday has a criminal history in three states that includes prior assault charges.
Christopher Koller, 39, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Beth Bezek. Authorities say Bezek was found dead outside Koller's Pond Lane home in Piscataway early Tuesday morning and appeared to have suffered blunt-force trauma to her head.
The disclosure of Koller's past encounters with law enforcement was made during his first appearance in Superior Court in Middlesex County on Thursday before Judge Alberto Rivas.
Koller, dressed in a green jail jumpsuit, sat stoically in the jury box during the brief appearance.
Christopher Koller. (Somerset County Prosecutor's Office)Bezek's family and friends attended the court appearance, several of them holding pictures of her. Her mother, Teresa Bezek, cried in the courtroom at the conclusion of the court appearance and was held tight by family and friends.
Clutching a photo of Bezek and fighting back tears, Teresa Bezek said: "I loved her more than life itself."
In arguing that Koller's $1 million bail should not be reduced, Middlesex County Assistant Prosecutor R. Scott LaMountain said Koller has a criminal history, including two felony charges out of Somerset County.
In one of those cases, Koller was charged with theft and fraud in a scheme to snag money for a chimney sweeping contract at the Polo Club Association of Far Hills.
Koller, who was living in South Plainfield at the time, worked with the manager of the club to take a bid to repair about 100 damaged chimneys for more than $65,000 awarded to McPuff Chimney Services of Branchburg and give it to a third-party contractor who agreed to do the job for less, according to an indictment.
The indictment said McPuff Chimney Services was never notified of the contract and Koller and the manager pocketed the difference.
Koller pleaded guilty to theft and was sentenced to three years' probation, and a Somerset County judge ordered him to pay $23,361 in restitution, court records show.
Beth Bezek, 31, of Raritan. (Photo courtesy of the Bezek family) He has violated probation, records show, and was scheduled to appear in Somerset County Superior Court on another violation of probation on Nov. 14.
LaMountain said Koller also has a criminal history in Pennsylvania and New York, both incidents involving assault charges.
Koller's attorney, Jacob Davidson of Woodbridge, asked Rivas to lower Koller's bail to $500,000 with a 10-percent option. Davidson maintains his client has made every court appearance, has ties to the community and has several family members that live within 10 minutes of Koller's home in Piscataway.
"He vigorously denies the charges," Davidson said outside the courtroom, adding that what happened to Bezek was a "tragedy."
Rivas ruled to keep Koller's bail at $1 million.
Bezek was found lying outside Koller's home around 1 a.m. Authorities said she was visiting Koller when she suffered blunt-force trauma to the head.
She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Authorities are still awaiting the results of an autopsy report to determine the exact cause of death.
Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.