Mom brought kids to safety before she and husband stabbed to death on trail: Police

Yahoo

6 days ago

A 28-year-old teacher has admitted to murdering the married couple found stabbed to death on a walking trail in an Arkansas park over the weekend in what appears to be a "completely random" attack, police said.
Andrew James McGann, 28, of Springdale, Arkansas, was charged with two counts of capital murder in the killings of 43-year-old Clinton David Brink and his wife, 41-year-old Cristen Amanda Brink, Arkansas State Police announced Wednesday evening.
The Brinks were "fatally attacked" while out hiking with their two daughters at Devil's Den State Park on July 26, police said. The "horrific" assault occurred about a half mile into the park, with the husband attacked first, police said.
The children, ages 7 and 9, were not harmed in the incident thanks to the actions of their mother, police said.
"We believe that the mother took them to safety, and then returned to help her husband," Maj. Stacie Rhoads with the Arkansas State Police said during a press briefing Thursday.
Following a dayslong manhunt for the suspect, McGann was arrested shortly before 5 p.m. local time Wednesday at a barbershop in Springdale, about 30 miles north of the park, police said.
During an interview with police, he admitted to killing the couple, Arkansas State Police Director Col. Mike Hagar said during Thursday's press briefing.
DNA from blood recovered from the crime scene also matched McGann's DNA, Hagar said. The suspect had sustained cuts on his hands during a struggle with the victims, according to a law enforcement official familiar with the investigation.
Items recovered from his residence were "consistent with being involved in this particular crime," Hagar said.
McGann had recently moved to the area from Oklahoma and had been hired to work at a local school, officials said.
He was hired to teach in the Springdale Public Schools district this upcoming school year but had not yet begun employment, according to the district's superintendent, Jared Cleveland.
"This individual has not at any time come into contact with Springdale students or the families we serve," Cleveland said in a statement, adding that no additional information is available at this time due to the ongoing investigation.
"Our entire team extends our deepest condolences to the Brink family. Their children are especially in our thoughts and prayers," he said.
McGann was a fifth grade teacher in Broken Arrows, Oklahoma, during the 2023-2024 school year, the school district said. He passed required background checks, a Broken Arrow Public Schools spokesperson said.
The prior school year, he was employed at an elementary school in Flower Mound, Texas, the Lewisville Independent School District confirmed. He was placed on administrative leave in the spring of 2023 "following concerns related to classroom management, professional judgment, and student favoritism," and he ultimately resigned, the school district said.
"An internal investigation found no evidence of inappropriate behavior with students," the school district added.
Asked about a motive in the double homicide, Hagar said it remains under investigation, though he did say it appeared to be a "completely random event."
"We have no reason to believe that there was any known association between our suspects and our victims," Hagar said.
The victims died from stab wounds, and the murder weapon was a knife, Hagar said Thursday. Knives were recovered from the residence's home, but it is unclear if any was the murder weapon, Rhoads said.
Hagar said police received over 500 tips and credited the public's help with bringing the suspect into custody.
Arkansas State Police had also released a composite sketch and photo from behind of a man who was seen in Devil's Den State Park on Saturday, the day of the killings. Police asked for the public's help in identifying the man, who they said was wanted for questioning in connection with the double homicide.
Police previously said the suspect was seen leaving the area of the park in a black, four-door sedan, possibly a Mazda, with a license plate covered by tape, police said. The vehicle description was "critical" in identifying the suspect, Rhoads said.
Though he took steps to conceal his identity, the suspect was "very sloppy," Rhoads said.
Once they identified the suspect, McGann was arrested within an hour at the barbershop, she said.
Police do not believe the suspect was trying to alter his appearance in getting a haircut, according to Rhoads, saying, "Could chalk that up to school starts next week."
The Brinks had recently moved to Prairie Grove from North Dakota, police said.
The children are safe and in the custody of relatives, according to police.
"Our entire state is grieving for the tragic loss and senseless and horrific crime that's taken place," Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement. "One of the worst experiences that certainly I've ever had was making a phone call to the Brink family earlier this week. Nothing like that should ever have taken place."
Hagar said the Brinks were a loving couple, and credited their two young daughters with helping in the case, saying they are "in awe" of them.
"The information that they were able to provide to start us down this path, to be able to make this arrest, it all started with those two little girls," he said. "It's incredible."
Hagar said the couple has a third daughter who wasn't at the trail that day.
"It is my intention to use the full weight of my office to bring this defendant to justice for the Brinks family," Brandon Carter, the prosecuting attorney for Washington County, said at Thursday's press briefing.
The prosecutor's office will not be waiving the death penalty in the case, Carter said.
McGann is scheduled to make his first court appearance on Friday, with an arraignment expected next week.
All trails at Devil's Den State Park, which were closed following the killings, will remain closed for now, Arkansas Secretary of Parks Shay Lewis said.