SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — One of two men charged in the 2019 murder and kidnapping of 34-year-old Elijah McReynolds has been sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Online court records show that William Skaggs changed his plea on Monday (11/21/22) to guilty to charges of kidnapping and involuntary manslaughter under a plea agreement with Greene County prosecutors.
He was sentenced to 10 years on the kidnapping count and five years for manslaughter, to be served consecutively.
McReynolds first went missing in the summer of 2019. Police said at the time that a confidential source came forward accusing Dustin Winter, 30, of being involved in the homicide of McReynolds and that it took place in a U-Haul van.
After authorities discovered Winter had charges for not returning the U-Haul on time, authorities confronted Winter. A high-speed chase through Springfield and Strafford ensued, ending in Winter crashing the U-Haul near Marshfield. He was taken into custody.
Following forensic testing, McReynolds’ blood was discovered in the U-Haul van.
Skaggs was identified as one of two accomplices by a source who tipped authorities about the U-Haul. He and Kaleigh Pickle were charged with second-degree murder.
In April 2020, Winter was charged with first-degree murder and three counts of tampering with physical evidence. He was found guilty of first-degree murder in a trial in September and is to be sentenced on Dec. 9, 2022.
Pickle pleaded guilty to kidnapping and is serving a five-year sentence on that charge.