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'I am God,' alleged crossbow killer once told daughter, her grandfather says

"You reap what you sow." That's Paul Kuzan's favorite quote, according to his Facebook page. Kuzan, who allegedly killed his new wife with a crossbow Sunday night in Northeast Philadelphia, professed Christian faith but dabbled in drugs, alcohol, and prostitutes, his ex-wife's father said Tuesday.

Paul Kuzan
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"You reap what you sow."

That's Paul Kuzan's favorite quote, according to his Facebook page.

Kuzan, who allegedly killed his new wife with a crossbow Sunday night in Northeast Philadelphia, professed Christian faith but dabbled in drugs, alcohol, and prostitutes, his ex-wife's father said Tuesday.

"He claims that he was into religion," said Richard Orr. "But every commandment that I know of he broke, including, 'Thou shalt not murder.' "

Kuzan, 41, was charged with murder and possessing instruments of a crime in the death of his wife of nine days, Pamela Nightlinger, 42. Police said Kuzan shot her with a high-velocity crossbow as she sat in a chair at their home on the 3100 block of Willits Road.

After the shooting, neighbors said, Kuzan stood in his doorway naked. Police said he surrendered at his home without incident and later confessed to the slaying.

Orr, the father of Kuzan's first wife - with whom he had two children - said his daughter was mentally, physically, and emotionally abused by Kuzan during their decadelong marriage. Orr said his daughter told him of the abuse after she divorced Kuzan about four years ago.

"Before their marriage, my daughter was the type, you couldn't say boo to her wrong or she would defend herself," Orr said. "Now she is gun-shy and in a shell."

Kuzan's religious beliefs sometimes went off the deep end, Orr said.

"He would say to my granddaughter at the age of 11 or 12, 'I'm your husband, you're my wife. I am God, you will do what I tell you,' " Orr said. "Now, he's got to answer to the Almighty that he thought he was."

Kuzan had a history of drug and alcohol abuse and had been in and out of addiction groups, according to Orr. He also said that Kuzan was "with prostitutes constantly."

Court records show that Kuzan was arrested in May 2015 for allegedly patronizing prostitutes and criminal solicitation. He pleaded no contest and was sentenced to probation.

According to Kuzan's Facebook page, he attended the "School of Hard Knocks" and Roman Catholic High School.

Orr said Kuzan had a good job in engineering maintenance and had served in the Navy. Kuzan's Facebook page says he was a former boatswain in the Navy. A Navy spokesman did not respond to a request for confirmation of the claim.

Kuzan was not a hunter, and Orr said he did not know why he had a crossbow but said he never questioned whether Kuzan was capable of using a weapon.

"I didn't have no doubt he was capable of killing somebody," Orr said. "But I was afraid he was going to kill my daughter or the kids."

Orr said Kuzan's children are now safe with their mother and doing "as well as you can expect for something like this."

On his Facebook page, Kuzan often talked about his faith but also posted childish antics like a video of a friend lighting a firecracker protruding from Kuzan's buttocks.

"Started my new anger management class," Kuzan captioned the video. "i think im makin progress!!"

farrs@phillynews.com

215-854-4225@FarFarrAway