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Background: News footage of the scene in Pace, Fla., where Danika Troy’s body was found (WEAR). Insets (left to right): Mitchell Eddins and Danika Troy (Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office).
A new arrest has been made in the tragic case concerning a Florida teenager, whose remains were discovered burned in a forested area.
The individual arrested, Mitchell Eddins, 45, was initially the one to inform authorities about the grim discovery. However, according to law enforcement, Eddins delayed his report. An arrest document reviewed by Law&Crime revealed that police spoke with Eddins shortly after midnight on December 3, following his call about finding a body. The body was later identified as 14-year-old Danika Troy.
Authorities criticized Eddins for waiting several hours to report the finding, insisting that he should have done so immediately. Additionally, Eddins allegedly took a scooter from the scene, which is believed to have belonged to Troy, adding another charge to his case.
According to the police, Eddins discovered Troy’s charred remains on December 2, around 1 p.m., while walking along a wooded path in Pace, Florida. The arrest document specifies that Eddins stopped to relieve himself and noticed the scorched area along with a black scooter. Upon attempting to take the scooter, he allegedly noticed the deceased body.
Instead of contacting authorities right away, Eddins reportedly returned home with the scooter. The arrest report states he mentioned the discovery to several people, who all urged him to alert law enforcement. When questioned by police on his delay, Eddins reportedly said he “planned to” call them.
The police eventually found Troy’s scooter hidden in a “back room” at Eddins’ residence.
As Law&Crime previously reported, two teenagers are charged with murdering Troy. Police said that 16-year-old Gabriel Williams and 14-year-old Kimahri Blevins lured Troy out to the woods, shot her multiple times, and burned her body. Troy was last seen alive on the night of Nov. 30.
According to arrest reports obtained by Law&Crime, a witness told police that Blevins and Williams planned to kill Troy after she insulted Williams on social media and blocked Blevins’ account.
Eddins was charged with failure to report a death and petit theft, both misdemeanors. He was booked into the Santa Rosa County Jail, where he is being held on $7,500 bail. His next court date is on Dec. 16.
