Kevin Klym, the former boyfriend of murdered Playboy model Paula Sladewski, has no publicly reported current address or occupation. The last substantive update came in 2020, when North Miami police confirmed he was no longer a person of interest in Sladewski’s January 2010 killing. He has never been charged in her death. A separate Michigan arrest warrant for aggravated domestic violence, issued days before her murder, has no publicly reported resolution.1CBS News Miami. Lead Detective Speaks Out About Murder Case of Model Paula Sladewski
What’s Publicly Known About Him Today
After the initial Miami investigation in January 2010, police allowed Klym to return to his home in Southern California while they worked to verify his account of the night Sladewski disappeared.2ABC 11. Person of Interest in Model’s Murder He and Sladewski had been living together in Rancho Cucamonga before the trip to Florida.3Daily Breeze. Slain Rancho Cucamonga Model and Boyfriend Had Tumultuous Relationship, Say Neighbors
Nothing since then has placed him publicly. Reporters covering the cold case in 2020 confirmed only his clearance, not where he had gone or what he was doing.4Miami New Times. Police Still Haven’t Solved the Paula Sladewski Cold Case
Why He Was Named a Person of Interest
On January 7, 2010, North Miami police formally named Klym a person of interest because he was one of the last people known to have seen Sladewski alive. Investigators were explicit that the designation was not an accusation.5ABC News. Playboy Model Paula Sladewski Feared for Life, Stepfather Says
Four days earlier, in the early morning of January 3, Klym and Sladewski had been at Club Space in downtown Miami when they argued. Bouncers ejected Klym; Sladewski was removed shortly afterward.6NBC Miami. Bouncer Disputes Boyfriend’s Tale of Model’s Last Moments Surveillance video showed her leaving the club at about 7:21 a.m.7ABC News. Playboy Model Surveillance Video Roughly 14 hours later, her burned body was found in a dumpster in an industrial stretch of North Miami, about 12 miles from the club. She was identified days later through dental records.1CBS News Miami. Lead Detective Speaks Out About Murder Case of Model Paula Sladewski
Klym’s account, through his attorney Marc Beginin, was that after being ejected he asked bouncers to tell Sladewski he was waiting, was told she did not want to leave, and returned to the couple’s hotel alone. He then filed a missing person report, contacted her family in Michigan, hired a private investigator, and distributed flyers in South Beach.5ABC News. Playboy Model Paula Sladewski Feared for Life, Stepfather Says Beginin said Klym offered to take a polygraph, though no public record shows whether one was administered.8True Crime News. Miami Murder Mystery: Who Killed Model Outside After-Hours Club
How He Was Cleared
By 2020, Commander Michael Gaudio, the lead detective on the case, confirmed that Klym was no longer a person of interest.1CBS News Miami. Lead Detective Speaks Out About Murder Case of Model Paula Sladewski A Miami New Times report that same year reached the same conclusion and noted that Club Space employees who had been questioned early on were also cleared.4Miami New Times. Police Still Haven’t Solved the Paula Sladewski Cold Case Police have not publicly described what specifically eliminated him.
The Domestic Violence Record
Klym’s clearance in the murder case does not erase a separate record of domestic incidents between him and Sladewski in the months before her death. His own attorney described the relationship as “loving and volatile.” Sladewski’s stepfather, Richard Watkins, told ABC News that she had texted an ex-boyfriend saying Klym was “trying to kill” her.5ABC News. Playboy Model Paula Sladewski Feared for Life, Stepfather Says
The documented incidents:
- June 14, 2009, in California: Sladewski was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon after, according to deputies, she threw a glass bottle at Klym during a drinking-fueled argument. He fell onto the broken glass and was cut. Charges against her were eventually dropped.3Daily Breeze. Slain Rancho Cucamonga Model and Boyfriend Had Tumultuous Relationship, Say Neighbors
- November 28, 2009, in Southfield, Michigan: Klym was arrested for domestic assault and larceny after Sladewski reported that he slapped her when she confronted him about taking cash from her purse.9CBS News. Murdered Playboy Model’s Lover Kevin Klym Wanted Over Domestic Violence
- December 3, 2009: Klym was arrested for aggravated domestic violence after allegedly punching Sladewski in a hotel room, breaking her nose and fracturing her cheekbone.9CBS News. Murdered Playboy Model’s Lover Kevin Klym Wanted Over Domestic Violence
Klym was scheduled to appear in the 16th District Court in Livonia, Michigan, on January 5, 2010, to answer the aggravated domestic violence charge. He did not appear, and the court issued an arrest warrant. No public information has emerged about whether that warrant was ever resolved or whether the charge was adjudicated.
The Case Itself Is Still Open
Sladewski’s murder remains unsolved. Three Club Space employees told the club’s owner they saw an unidentified man approach her on the street outside the club and walk away with her, and police released a composite sketch of that man.10Miami New Times. Paula Sladewski Murder: Club Space Defends Itself He has never been identified.1CBS News Miami. Lead Detective Speaks Out About Murder Case of Model Paula Sladewski The North Miami Police Department and Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers continue to accept tips.