Gruesome Murder, Suicide, Leads to Arrest of Accomplice

SPRING HILL – Yesterday, R News reported the suicide of a Spring Hill man who allegedly hung himself at a residence on Elkin Ave. After speaking with a family member today, we learned that the man who hung himself had just committed a gruesome murder inside his own home.

Shyanna Enos tells R News that her brother, 25-year-old Dakota Lee Croft killed his uncle William Trudell inside the home on Elkin Ave. Enos says his friend 33-year-old Dustin McMillan helped Croft kill Trudell and then attempted to dispose of the body.

Officials say Croft and McMillan waited until Trudell walked into the garage where they ambushed and killed him. Enos says Croft used a pipe with a gaff attached to initially kill Trudell and then continued stabbing his lifeless body with scissors, knives, and other objects, before stuffing his body in a trashcan. Deputies who arrived on scene followed drag marks to where Trudell's body was discovered outside the home.

Enos says Croft would have killed other occupants in the home if they had not escaped and fled in a vehicle after he murdered Trudell.

After the murder, officials say Croft and McMillan tried to clean up the garage. Croft then went outside, cut off a GPS monitoring device from his ankle, and hung himself.

During the investigation, detectives learned that Croft was upset with Trudell for being a "cop caller," and for disrespecting women in the home.

I asked Enos why McMillan would help Croft commit such a heinous crime and she said, "He wanted my brother's acceptance, he was a follower, they egged off of each other's negative energy." Enos says Croft was mentally unstable.

Croft was just released from prison in March of 2023 after spending almost five years behind bars on child abuse charges.

McMillan was arrested and charged with First Degree Murder and Tampering with Evidence. He is currently held without bond in the Hernando County Jail.