Police say Costello was stabbed to death at an Oklahoma City restaurant Sunday.
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Lt. Alex Edwards said the stabbing took place shortly after 6:30 p.m.at the Braum’s at 11224 N May Ave.
Police say Mark Costello’s wife, Cathy, witnessed the attack and tried to intervene. One of the customers reportedly punched the killer to stop the attack. He and his wife had five children, according to a biography posted on the state’s Web site.
Mark Costello, 59, was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
“The suspect stabbed the victim in the back of the head”, witness Patrick Spencer said.
Christian Costello previously was arrested previous year in an indecent exposure incident in which a woman reported to The Village police that he was seen standing in front of a window at St. Eugene School with his trousers down. At the least one witness knocked Christian Costello off-balance with a vehicle, and others held him down till officers arrived, the police spokesman stated.
In a plea bargain over a 2012 driving under the influence of drugs charge, Christian Costello disclosed that he had once been confined for three months so he could be treated for mental illness and that he was taking mood stabilizers, according to court records obtained by The Associated Press. Two years later, he faced charges of outraging public decency. That case is still pending.
“Like most of us across the state, I am shocked and saddened by the passing of Labor Commissioner Mark Costello”.
His longtime friend, Stuart Jolly, told The Daily Beast they talked about politics, fatherhood and family while dining out at the summit.
Mark Costello’s oldest daughter posted a heartbreaking tribute to her father on her Facebook page saying in part, “Never going to be walked down the aisle by you … but most of all never will I be able to be held by my daddy again”.
“Our hearts ache as an agency for this tragic event and our department grieves for his family during this very hard time”, Labor Department Chief of Staff Jim Marshall said in a statement. “All Oklahomans should keep the family in their prayers and give them the peace and the quiet they need as a family to heal from this right now”.
Condolences were already being issued within two hours of Costello’s death.
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Costello was first elected as Labor Commissioner in November 2010, and then re-elected in 2014. “Flags on state property will be lowered to half-staff through Friday in honor of Mark Costello’s life and service to the people of Oklahoma”.
