Daniel Sites
Sites, circa 1996; Kenneth Dwayne Ezell, circa 2005
- Missing Since 07/24/1996
- Missing From Citrus County, Florida
- Classification Endangered Missing
- Sex Male
- Race White
- Age 26 years old
- Height and Weight Unknown
- Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian male. Brown hair, blue eyes. Sites's nicknames are Danny and Gambit.
Details of Disappearance
Sites was last heard from when his adoptive mother called him on the phone. She stated their conversation was normal and he told her he loved her, then excused himself and said he had to take another call. He has never been heard from again. He left behind cash, clothes and his vehicle behind at his home.
At the time of his disappearance, Sites was a confidential police informant. He went missing just months before he was scheduled to testify in a murder-for-hire trial. He was also a drug dealer, selling cocaine, marijuana, LSD and Ecstasy. He owed hundreds of dollars to other dealers.
In December 1997, Kenneth Dwayne Ezell was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in Sites's presumed death. A photo of Ezell is with this case summary. He has a history of violent behavior.
Authorities believe Jeffrey Sean Hamilton, a drug dealer Sites owed $800 to, paid Ezell thousands of dollars to kill Sites. Ezell allegedly confessed the murder to an acquaintance; he said he had taken Sites to a wooded area near the Crystal River, beaten him and shot him in the back of the head, then buried his body.
Most of the witnesses against Ezell were themselves criminals. He maintained his innocence at his 1998 trial. Ezell was found not guilty of murder, but guilty of conspiracy to commit murder. He was paroled in 2005 and now lives in Morriston, Florida. Hamilton was never charged in Sites's case.
Authorities are still interested in finding Sites's remains. Foul play is suspected in his case due to the circumstances involved.
Investigating Agency
- Citrus County Sheriff's Office 352-726-4488
Updated 2 times since October 12, 2004. Last updated July 27, 2010; details of disappearance updated.