CITRUS COUNTY, Fla. — Earlier this week, after an intensive investigation by the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) Major Crimes Unit (MCU), arrest warrants were obtained for 29-year-old Thomas Paul Smith and 29-year-old Dmitry William Growdon in connection with a 2021 homicide in Hernando.
Both men face charges of 3rd Degree Murder with a Firearm, Criminal Conspiracy while Armed with a Firearm, and Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.
On Thursday, September 9, 2021, at approximately 1:01 a.m., CCSO Communications received a call regarding a vehicle crash in a wooded area along North Alabaster Drive in Hernando. Deputies discovered a 2020 white Dodge pickup truck with bullet holes along the exterior. Inside, the driver, 20-year-old Marquel “Manny” Murray, was found deceased from multiple suspected gunshot wounds.
Detectives and crime scene specialists from the CCSO Criminal Investigations Division (CID) responded, treating the case as a homicide. Evidence collected at the scene, along with digital evidence and witness interviews, led to the development of probable cause and subsequent arrest warrants for Smith and Growdon.
Growdon is currently in the custody of the Department of Corrections on unrelated charges and will be held on the Citrus County warrant. On August 22, deputies conducted a traffic stop and arrested Smith without incident. He was transported to the Citrus County Detention Facility, where he is being held without bond.
“No amount of time can diminish the importance of justice. Our hearts go out to the Murray family, who have been waiting for this moment,” said CCSO Sergeant Thomas Dowling. “This arrest proves that criminals can’t hide forever, and we will not rest until those who commit such acts of violence are held accountable.”
Anyone with information regarding this case is asked to contact the CCSO Major Case Section at 352-249-2790 or report anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 1-888-ANY-TIPS (269-8477).
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.