Kent, Wash. • When Ed Wadagnolo posted a job opening for his small software company last year, he received an application from an experienced programmer named Josh Powell.
"He told me his name," Wadagnolo recalled Wednesday, "and he told us to look him up. ‘I am that Josh Powell.’ "
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Powell became the "No. 1 candidate," Wadagnolo said, because of his technical abilities. When deciding on whether to offer him a position, Powell’s forthrightness about how he was under suspicion for the disappearance of his wife, Susan Cox Powell, worked in his favor.
"There’s a couple things you look for when you hire somebody," Wadagnolo said. "Is he honest? On [the disappearance] he wasn’t just honest. He shared."
"We made a decision," Wadagnolo added, "that we believe in our justice system and he has not been charged with anything."
Wadagnolo asked that the name of the company, which he partly owns, not be published. He fears a backlash after Powell on Sunday locked his two sons, Charlie, 7, and Braden, 5, inside his rented house in Graham and set fire to it. The blaze killed Powell and the boys.
Wadagnolo said businesses will order software to their specifications and his small staff will design it. The software company is run out of a workplace here in suburban Seattle. Occasionally, employees have to come to the workplace for a meeting or other business, but for the most part everyone works from home and makes their own hours, Wadagnolo said.
Powell visited the workplace fewer than 10 times in the year he worked for the business, Wadagnolo said. The first time, he was dressed in a suit and tie. After that, Wadagnolo said, Powell arrived in the standard business-casual attire of the other employees.
Wadagnolo said Wednesday he doesn’t think Powell had visited since November. Wadagnolo said Powell’s salary was in the range of $40,000 to the $60,000s.
When Wadagnolo and his staff need to talk to one another, the conversation is business-focused. But most employees share a few personal details as they interact.
Wadagnolo said Powell’s personal discussions were limited to occasionally mentioning that he and his sons went to a park or had some other activity over the weekend.
When West Valley City police served a search warrant in September on the home of Steve Powell, Josh Powell’s father, one of the computers they seized was the work laptop Wadagnolo had issued to the younger Powell. Wadagnolo said Powell told him what happened and replaced the laptop with his own money. Police have never returned the computer, Wadagnolo said.
"He was a good worker," Wadagnolo said. "He didn’t let personal issues affect his work."
On Sunday, Wadagnolo received an email from Powell identical to the one Powell sent his attorney.
"I’m sorry. Goodbye."
At first, Wadagnolo thought Powell might have been working on experimental software that sends emails. It wasn’t until hearing news reports of the fatal fire that Wadagnolo called 911 to report the email.
Wadagnolo says he is filled with sadness over what happened to Charlie and Braden, but feels he must keep his composure because he has a business to run now with one less person.
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