Emery Whitt sentenced to 30 years for 2017 murder of Ryan McClellan
Inverness (Citrus County), Florida - On Thursday, Dec. 10, 2020 at the Citrus County Courthouse, Judge Ric Howard sentenced 28 year-old Emery Nicholas Whitt to 30 years in prison for the 2017 murder of 33 year-old Ryan Michael McClellan, who had been Mr. Whitt's roommate for two weeks at the time of his murder.
Detective Richey and Sergeant Holloway, with the Citrus County Sheriff's Office (CCSO) Criminal Investigation Division (CID), conducted an approximatly 15 months-long investigation that led to Whitt's arrest in 2018 for McClellan's murder.
Mr. McClellan was last seen alive by his girlfriend on Sept. 15, 2017, and reported by a friend as a missing person to the CCSO on Sept. 20, 2017. On Sept. 27, 2017, McClellan's Jeep was located, abandoned, off S. Applebud Terrace in Homosassa.
Major Crimes detectives were unable to locate Mr. McClellan, but learned that Emery Whitt had made large withdrawals from Mr. McClellan's bank account. On Sept. 29, 2017, Mr. Whitt was located, and arrested on a charge of criminal use of personal identification. Personal items that belonged to Mr. McClellan, which included several firearms, were found in Whitt's possession.
On Oct. 1, 2017, the CCSO arrested Whitt as a fugitive from justice on an Amelia County, VA warrant for burglary of a dwelling and grand theft of a firearm; he was later extradited to Virginia on the warrant.
On Nov. 25, 2017, Mr. McClellan's remains were found by a CCSO deputy, inside of a trash can found about 50 feet into a vacant, wooded lot off S. American Avocet Pt. in Lecanto, FL, about a half-mile from his S. Rudolph Pt., Homosassa residence. Medical examiners determined that Mr. McClellan was the victim of a violent homicide, with trauma to his upper body.
On Dec. 11, 2018, Whitt was extradited back to Citrus County from the Henrico County Jail West in Laurel, VA, on a Citrus County warrant for failure to appear in court for using or possessing identification of another person without consent, and on Dec. 20, Whitt was arrested on a warrant, signed by Citrus County Court Judge Mark Yerman, for non-premeditated murder (no bond).
"Whitt had no respect for human life and was a danger to the citizens of Citrus County," said Citrus County Sheriff Mike Prendergast. "Our deputies, detectives, and members of the State Attorney's Office work in partnership to keep our streets safe, and this case is an example of that cooperation. It is our hope this prison sentence brings a sense of closure to McClellan's family and loved ones."