A man has been arrested in Florida after the bodies of four missing persons were found shot and dismembered in a river.
Joe Kennedy was stopped by police Monday after he was spotted driving a stolen vehicle in Shores of Daytona Beach, local police Chief Joe Prentice said.
The 67-year-old, who was described as “the person involved” in the deaths of the four men, was quickly apprehended and will be taken to Oklahoma, where the bodies were found and questioned.
Officials investigate a bridge near the Deep Fork River where bodies were found in Okmulgee, Oklahoma.Image: Associated Press
The victims have been identified as four friends who disappeared on October 9: Mark Chastain, 32, Billy Chastain, 30, Max Parks, 32, and Alex Stevens, 29 .
Mr Prentice declined to identify Kennedy as a suspect in the homicide, saying “a murder investigation is ongoing”.
The dismembered bodies of the men were found on Friday in the Deep Fork River in Okmulgee, a small town about 40 miles (65 kilometers) south of Tulsa.
Mr Prentice said a witness told police he was invited to join the group to “take a lick”, but explained he did not know what the phrase meant.
“It’s a common term for engaging in some kind of criminal activity,” Mr Prentice added. “We don’t know what they’re planning or where they’re planning to do it.”
Okmulgee Police Chief Joe Prentice.Image: Associated Press
Kennedy, who disappeared after the body was found, was questioned beforehand when he denied knowing any victims.
Mr Prentice said investigators searched a scrap yard owned by Kennedy and adjoining properties owned by others, where they found evidence of “violence”.
While the official cause of death has not been released, all four men were found dismembered and with gunshot wounds, the police chief said.