Oklahoma murders: 'Person of interest' Joseph Kennedy confessed he killed and 'cut up' 4 men, claims prosecutor
OKMULGEE, OKLAHOMA: Joseph Kennedy, the owner of the scrapyard where the police believe the four Oklahoma men were murdered, has been identified as a person of interest. Mark Chastain, 32, Mike Sparks, 32, Billy Chastain, 30, and Alex Stevens, 29 were on a weekend bike ride in Okmulgee on October 9 when they went missing. The police explained that Kennedy was arrested on October 17 in Daytona Beach, Florida, while driving a stolen vehicle. Now, according to a fresh update on the case, he allegedly told a woman living in Oklahoma that he killed and "cut them up," referring to the Oklahoma quadruple murder.
Kennedy has been a person of interest ever since he fled Oklahoma after the victims' bodies were found shot, dismembered, and dumped in a Deep Fork River. According to the prosecutor's affidavit filed on November 15, the accused told a woman living in Gore, Oklahoma, that "they were stealing from him" and that he killed them and cut them up. The affidavit was filed by Robert Seacat, the plaintiffs' representative, who believes that "there’s a lot of circumstantial evidence at this point that points to Joseph Kennedy as the perpetrator and causing the deaths of these individuals," as reported by The Sun. Megan Gordon, Jessica Chastain, and Karen Sparks filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the person of interest.
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The affidavit was unsealed on Thursday, December 1, and signed by Assistant District Attorney Carman Rainbolt. As of now, Kennedy has not been formally charged with the deaths of the four men. However, Okmulgee County Jail records show that he is now being held on a $10 million bond, shooting up from the previous amount of only $500,000. After Kennedy's attorneys pushed for an explanation about the bond, the affidavit was unsealed. Kennedy has also been placed on a suicide watch.
On the other hand, Rainbolt mentioned in the affidavit that considering Kennedy's past attempts to flee Oklahoma, the AG sided with the prosecutors and believed Kennedy would flee again if he were released from custody. He is also being held on a 2012 charge of assault and battery with a deadly weapon. Speaking on the affidavit filing, Seacat explained, "If I let this man and his family liquidate all his assets, there won’t be any compensation. There won’t be any justice for [the families]. So that’s why I filed as quickly as I did, and why I sought and acquired this temporary injunction."