Teacher hired in Arkansas charged in Devil’s Den park killing of couple that was hiking with kids

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas police charged a 28-year-old school teacher in the killing of a married couple who were hiking with their children at Devil’s Den State Park, finding him in a nearby city after a five-day search and public pleas for trailgoers to look through their photos.

State Police arrested Andrew James McGann at a barbershop in Springdale, said Col. Stacie Rhoads, commander of the department’s criminal investigation division. He was charged with two counts of capital murder and was being held Thursday in the state’s Washington County jail.

Police announced the arrest at a Wednesday night news conference but would not discuss a 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 McGann, and a message was left for a number listed for him. It was not immediately clear when his first court appearance was.

“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,” Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters.

Sprindale is roughly 30 miles (48.28 kilometers) north of the state’s remote Devil’s Den park, where trails have remained closed since Saturday’s killings.

Clinton David Brink, 43, and Cristen Amanda Brink, 41, were found dead on a walking trail at Devil’s Den. Their daughters, who are 7 and 9, 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.

The State Police have released few details about the investigation, including how the couple was killed. Rhoads said the public’s help and video footage they received was instrumental in capturing McGann. Tips came in from as far away as Washington state, she said.

“It was overwhelming,” she said.

Jared Cleveland, the superintendent of Springdale Public Schools, said in a statement that McGann had not yet begun his employment and that the district could not provide more information, citing the investigation.

“Our entire team extends our deepest condolences to the Brink family. Their children are especially in our thoughts and prayers,” Clevelansd said.

Sierra Marcum said three years ago, her son was a student in McGann’s fourth grade classroom in Flower Mound, Texas, and described him as the “most standoff teacher she had ever met.” Her son’s yearbook includes a photo of McGann.

“Pretty cold. You could ask him a question and he would give you a one word response,” she said. “Overall just pretty disinterested in his students.”

Clinton and Cristen Brink had just moved from South Dakota to the small city of Prairie Grove in northwest Arkansas. Their water had been connected less than two weeks ago, Mayor David Faulk said.

Clinton Brink had been scheduled to start a job as a milk delivery driver 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 “heroes protecting their little girls.”

“Our entire state is grieving for the tragic loss and senseless and horrific crime that’s taken place in this area,” Sanders said.

Devil’s Den is a 2,500-acre (1,000-hectare) state park near West Fork, about 140 miles (220 kilometers) northwest of Little Rock, the state capital.

The park is known for its hiking trails and rock formations, and it is a short drive from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville and Walmart’s Bentonville headquarters.

It was selected as a state park site in the 1930s and the park’s trails lead to the surrounding Ozark National Forest.

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Associated Press reporter Hallie Golden contributed from Seattle.