Former NYPD Officer Charged With Wife's Murder

While family and friends wiped away tears and mourned the loss of Tina Adovasio at her funeral, her estranged husband was noticeably absent.

Adovasio's husband Edwin Coello, a former NYPD cop, was arrested and charged with her murder, a police spokesperson said Tuesday.

Coello's attorney Renee Hill did not immediately return phone calls for comment.

Tina Adovasio is seen in this handout photo from the NYPD.

NYPD / White Plains Patch

Tina Adovasio went missing on March 11 and was found dead five days later. Her husband, a former New York City policeman, has been arrested and charged with her murder.

Adovasio, 40, was found dead in a heavily wooded area off the Taconic State Parkway on March 16, five days after she went missing.

Her husband reported her missing after an argument, police said. Although he was cooperating with authorities initially, Coello hired two lawyers, refused to have his car searched and declined to provide a DNA sample after his wife's body was found. Last week, he was named a "person of interest."

Coello has a history of domestic violence and, according to the Bronx District Attorney's Office, he was arrested in February 2006 and charged with second-degree harassment against his wife. Authorities said he had reportedly been seen carrying a large duffle bag the day after Adovasio's disappearance.

A family member, who did not wish to be identified, said Coello was not allowed to attend Adovasio's wake, funeral or burial.

Adovasio, a mother of four, lived in the Bronx and worked as a nurse. She leaves behind four children, her parents, two brothers, cousins, aunts and uncles who all attended her funeral.