Friends Shocked, Say Bridgewater Gunman Was 'Loving' Guy

To his friends, the best thing about him was that he could make people laugh and brighten their days.

But that memory is now in stark contrast to what placed 19-year-old Bridgewater resident Michael Koury in the news after Monday’s that left both him and owner Roy DeVoe dead.

“The best thing about Mike was during my entire friendship with him, there was never a time when he didn’t make me laugh,” said Erin Kenney, who graduated from with Koury in June 2010. “Mike was the highlight of any party, and he always gave insights that could make me laugh.”

Koury was identified by authorities Tuesday as the gunman who killed DeVoe in an apparent armed robbery Monday that turned into a murder-suicide in the jewelry store on Route 202.

According to the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office, Koury fatally shot DeVoe in the head after demanding jewelry from DeVoe’s daughter and threatening to shoot her. Authorities said Koury then shot himself in the mouth, cut his throat with a knife and fatally shot himself in the head.

Jack Bennett, of the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office, said Thursday that authorities do not know of any connection between Koury and DeVoe, and have not released the contents of a suicide note later found at Koury’s residence.

But many of Koury’s friends said that this incident is not how they want him to be remembered.

“I was at Wegmans, the supermarket right next to the jewelry store, on Monday, and left 15 minutes before everything happened,” said Kenney, who met and became friends with Koury in the first grade. “I did not hear that it was Mike until Tuesday. When I heard, I was in shock and could not believe what had happened.”

Many of Koury’s friends said it was his goal after high school graduation to enter the Army because his father was in the service.

“He wanted to follow in [his dad’s] footsteps and join the army as well,” said Emma Carroll, a freshman at Susquehanna University who also graduated in 2010 with Koury. “I found out that he was denied entry into the US Army before the incident, but there’s no proof that that’s why he did what he did.”

Joe Cardali, another graduate and close friend of Koury’s, said Koury found out in early January that his application had been rejected.

“Mike was a great friend, he always had something funny or insightful to say,” Cardali said. “We’ll all remember just hanging out with him and all the fun times we shared. We’ll never be able to make sense of this tragedy, but I suspect the rejection from the Army was a factor.”

And while his friends try to understand why Koury did what he did, they have said they prefer to remember him as taking honors classes at the high school, and being both smart and funny.

“Our friend group knew him for being witty, he could always say something that was unexpected that could make us laugh,” Carroll said. “Mike really was a good guy, and what he did was completely wrong, but he should be remembered as a good friend who was insightful and trustworthy.”

“He had a really interesting personality, like he was someone who could tell you how things worked, or how to make something out of an ordinary object,” she added.

As friends try to make sense of the tragedy, and authorities continue to investigate the case, Superintendent of Schools Michael Schilder said the district’s guidance department has been put on notice about the incident.

“The district’s guidance staff has been notified and is offering counseling to any students who may need to talk,” he said.

But Kenney said she continues to hope that people can remember Koury for who he was before the tragedy.

“The situation that happened on Monday should not be what people remember of Mike,” she said. “He was one of the best friends someone could have.”

“My only wish is that people remember Mike as the loving, caring and trustworthy person that he was,” she added. “He will forever have a special place in my heart.”