Two men arrested and charged in disappearance and suspected killing of Ethan Fussell

The two people of interest in the disappearance and suspected killing of Ethan Fussell were arrested on Sunday on charges including accessory to capital murder after the fact.  

On Monday, the men were set for a first appearance before a judge on multiple changes in connection with the case. 

Fussell was last seen near Tom Costine and Driggers roads in rural North Lakeland on May 7 at 11:21 p.m. Last week, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office said it was investigating the case as a homicide. 

The men, Talon Isaac Page, 25, of Lakeland and Adoni Moran-Riviera, 21, were wanted for questioning by the Sheriff’s Office because they are considered to be the last people to engage with Fussell before he disappeared. 

At a news conference Monday in Winter Haven, Sheriff Grady Judd said more charges are expected in the case. He urged women who had frequently visited Page’s residence at 1116 Driggers Road to come forward with information. 

“You can be a suspect, or you can be a witness. The choice is yours,” Judd said.  

He also said a lab result from an extensive amount of blood found in the Driggers Road mobile home was confirmed on Friday to belong to Fussell.  

The Sheriff’s Office still had not found Fussell as of the 1:30 p.m. news conference at the Sheriff's Operations Center in Winter Haven, Judd said.  

He said the agency considers him to be deceased, investigators don’t know where his body is and would like to find him.  

“The best thing we can do is find Ethan,” Judd said. 

He also said Page and Fussell, who called one another brothers, had likely argued over drugs or money before he went missing. The sheriff said until his recent poor decision to live with Page, Fussell had zero arrests nor any criminal record and comes from a good family. 

A convicted felon, Page was charged with one count of accessory after the fact of a capital felony, and one count of destroying or tampering with evidence.  

Moran-Rivera, who also lived at the Driggers Road home, was charged with one count of accessory after the fact of a capital felony and one count of destroying or tampering with evidence. Also a convicted felon, he had been released from state prison in May 2023. 

Regarding the capture, Judd said the pair had been hiding out in a home in Mulberry after one of the suspects had called someone they had met at the jail to help them hide.  

But on Sunday, a neighbor recognized one of them from media reports and tipped off law enforcement of their whereabouts. One of the men was seen wearing a stocking over his head on the front porch of the home. 

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Neither suspect is cooperating with the investigation, the Sheriff's Office said. 

Heartland Crime Stoppers is offering a $5,000 reward for information on the whereabouts of Ethan Fussell's body and any other arrests related to his murder. 

Contact Crime Stoppers at 888-400-TIPS (888-400-8477), dial **TIPS from a cell phone or click submit at tip at www.heartlandcrimestoppers.com.