In a case that intertwined a lucrative California marijuana business with a fatal falling out, 34-year-old Tyler Worthington of North San Juan, California, was found deceased in a wooded area near Tuscumbia, Missouri, on June 11, 2018. An autopsy confirmed that the male victim had died from a single gunshot wound to the head, leading authorities to launch a homicide investigation.
The inquiry into Worthington's death quickly revealed his involvement in a significant marijuana oil
enterprise. Investigators discovered that he and a business partner, Joseph P. McKenna of Chicago, Illinois, were dealing in large quantities of the substance. A search of Worthington's California residence uncovered hundreds of marijuana plants and more than 500 pounds of processed marijuana. The investigation pointed to a business dispute that turned deadly.
Authorities pieced together a timeline indicating that Worthington had traveled to Chicago to meet McKenna for what was described as a 'job' in Missouri. Toll road cameras captured the two men leaving Chicago in separate vehicles on June 4, 2018. The same cameras, however, showed McKenna returning alone a mere 16 hours later. Just a week after this trip, a farmer discovered Worthington's remains. Evidence suggested that a financial dispute was the motive for the killing. An associate of both men told investigators that McKenna had expressed his intention to kill Worthington over a debt.
The investigation led to the arrest of Joseph McKenna in September 2018. He was charged with second-degree murder. The trail did not end with McKenna. Further investigation implicated a second man, 25-year-old Tyler M. Kroll of Lisle, Illinois, who was alleged to have been with McKenna during the trip to Missouri. Kroll was taken into custody in the Chicago area in March 2019 and charged with first-degree murder.
In January 2020, Joseph McKenna pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for his role in the death of Tyler Worthington. He was subsequently sentenced to 25 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections. Following his arrest, Tyler Kroll was released on a $750,000 bond. In November 2019, while out on bail, he was involved in a rollover crash in DuPage County, Illinois, and faced felony charges for leaving the scene of an accident that caused great bodily harm to his passenger. The final disposition of the murder charge against Kroll is not readily available in public records.
