Murder suspect taught area children

Gonzalez Jr.

A Gulf Breeze man who authorities allege was involved in the heinous home-intrusion murders of a beloved Escambia County couple last Thursday apparently trained area children and women in abduction awareness and kidnap prevention, self defense and rape awareness.

Previously convicted felon Leonard Patrick Gonzalez Jr., 35, of 10579 Sterling Point Drive in the Tiger Point area was arrested Sunday night and charged with murder, robbery and home invasion along with another former convicted felon, Wayne Thomas Coldiron, 41, of Pensacola.

Also charged in connection to the ambush shooting deaths of Beulah residents Byrd Billings, 66, and his wife, Melanie, 43, was Gonzalez' father, Leonard Patrick Gonzalez Sr., 56, of Pensacola. Additional arrests were expected and more charges against the alleged assailants were possible, Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan said as Gulf Breeze News prepared to go to press.

The crime garnered worldwide headlines over the weekend. Morgan, speaking during one of two Sunday news conferences, likened the case to a movie script and said the investigation was "mind-boggling."

The Billings were shot in the bedroom of their secluded, upscale home near the Alabama line. The couple provided haven for 13 adopted children, some of whom are afflicted with Down's Syndrome and others who are disabled. Three children in the home at the time of the killings encountered the intruders but were not physically harmed, Morgan said.

The murdered couple also was the parents of four biological children - two each through previous marriages - who were not at home at the time.

Gonzalez Jr. was being held Monday on $1 million bond.

He wrote in a June 25 blog on his MySpace.com page that he and wife, Tabatha, had received a Service To Mankind Award from the Pensacola Sertoma Club on behalf of the couple's non-profit organization created five years ago and known as Project Fight Back.

According to a blog written by Gonzalez Jr., the award was in recognition of "the difference the Gonzalezes made in the lives of many Northwest Florida families." He wrote that Project Fight Back provided free training and services to thousands of local women, and that more than 11,000 children participated in Project Fight Back workshops. He listed clients as including the Florida Department of Children and Families, the University of West Florida, and many other civic, social and religious organizations.

Gonzalez Jr., known in some circles as "Pat Poff," is the son of Gulf Breeze businesswoman Terri Poff, who co-operates Poff's Taekwondo Karate Schools Inc., along with her husband, Joe. The couple has conducted karate and selfdefense classes at the Gulf Breeze Recreation Center for many years, and Leonard Gonzalez Jr. has taught there, multiple sources told Gulf Breeze News.

Terri and Joe Poff were not implicated in the crime and are widely considered upstanding members of the community. They did not return a Monday phone message left on their business answering service from Gulf Breeze News.

Also in his MySpace blogs, Gonzalez Jr. expressed extreme anger stemming from a personal child-custody issue involving a daughter. Gonzalez also has six sons.

According to Morgan and court records, Gonzalez Jr. has an extensive criminal history. He previously was convicted on charges of home invasion, battery with a firearm, battery on a law enforcement officer and forgery.

Gonzalez's father, Leonard Patrick Gonzalez Sr., was the first suspect arrested in the case. Acting on a tip and aided by images on a surveillance camera at the Billings' home, Gonzalez Sr. was found in Pensacola allegedly hiding the red van believed to have been used in the home burglary and murders. According to the arrest report, Gonzalez Sr. told investigators that he drove the van that carried his son, Leonard Jr., and Coldiron onto and away from the Billings' property before and after the crimes.

Gonzalez Sr. initially was charged with tampering with evidence.

Morgan said surveillance video showed five masked men forcing their way into the residence with military-type proficiency. The crime took place in a matter of minutes.

Coldiron, who was also held on $1 million bond, is a convicted felon. He was released from prison in 2000 after serving time for aggravated battery.

Gonzalez Sr. also has a significant record of misdemeanor charges. He was being held on $500,000 bond.