Arkansas police arrest man in killings of married couple hiking in state park
Arkansas state police arrested James Andrew McGann from Springdale and charged him with two counts of capital murder. Police did not mention a possible motive.
McGann had been hired at Springdale public schools as a teacher candidate for the upcoming year but had not yet come into contact with any of its families or students, the district said in a statement.
A lawyer couldn't be located for him yet as he's just been arrested. It was not immediately clear when his first court appearance was, or where he was being held.
'No news can heal the enormous harm done to the Brink family in last weekend's crime, but this announcement is a comfort and reassurance for our state,' said Arkansas's governor, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, in a statement.
'If you commit a violent, senseless act here in our state, our law enforcement will hunt you down and bring you to justice, because that's what the people of Arkansas frankly deserve,' the governor added.
Clinton David Brink, 43, and Cristen Amanda Brink, 41, were found dead on Saturday on a walking trail at Devil's Den. Their daughters, who are seven and nine, were not hurt and are being cared for by family members, authorities have said.
Police had released a composite sketch and photo of a person of interest they were searching for in the attack. Along with the drawing, state police released a statement saying the suspect 'likely sustained an injury while attacking the couple'. It did not go into further detail.
The state police have released few details, including how the couple was killed. The FBI has said its Little Rock field office is assisting in the investigation. The head of the state police praised the cooperation among law enforcement in catching McGann.
'Because of their hard work and investigative skill, we were able to take a monster off the streets, and bring relief to those two precious girls, and the rest of our citizens,' Col Mike Hagar, the director of the Arkansas state police, said.
The Brinks had just moved from South Dakota to the small city of Prairie Grove in north-west Arkansas.
Clinton Brink had been scheduled to start a job as a milk delivery driver on Monday in the nearby Fayetteville area, according to Hiland Dairy, his employer. Cristen Brink had been licensed as a nurse in Montana and South Dakota before moving to Arkansas.
The Brink family said the couple died as 'heroes protecting their little girls'.
Devil's Den is a 2,500-acre state park near West Fork, about 140 miles (220km) north-west of Little Rock, the state capital.
The park's trails, which lead to the surrounding Ozark national forest, remained closed on Wednesday.
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