Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office deputies have arrested two men for the murder of a man from Colorado after a drug deal ended with his death.
At 8:21 a.m. on September 2, 2024, a report was called in to Lowndes County E-911 regarding a body found in the southern part of Lowndes County. The body was discovered at the entrance of the Luxapallila Creek Park.
When deputies arrived at the scene, they found the body inside a vehicle that had been burned. Detectives with the Criminal Investigation Division, CID, arrived at the scene. The vehicle was identified as a 1999 Lexus RS SUV from Colorado, and the driver is thought to be Elias Eugene Trudell, age 23, of Colorado Springs, Colorado.
According to a press release from Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office, the detectives found Jaleen Young, nicknamed “Gee,” age 24 of Starkville, as well as Kenneth Jones, nicknamed “KJ,” of Denton, Texas, as the suspects in the murder, as they were the last to be seen with the victim. The two, both from Columbus originally, were arrested and charged with murder.