Man arrested for Arkansas murder nearly 50 years later

By Steve Barnes LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (Reuters) - A man who was a little too chatty with a cellmate in Delaware a few years ago was arrested on Tuesday for a murder that took place nearly a half-century ago in Arkansas, authorities said. James Leon Clay, 67, was taken into custody by FBI agents in Georgetown, Delaware, and charged with murder and kidnapping in the 1967 killing of a North Little Rock, Arkansas man identified as James Ricks. Clay, who had an extensive criminal history, was awaiting trial for attempted bank robbery in Delaware in 2012 when he allegedly told a cellmate of the Arkansas killing, said Sheriff David Lucas of Jackson County, Arkansas. "He was running his chops," boasting of escaping prosecution, Lucas said. The cellmate eventually approached authorities with the information and the case was reopened in January, Lucas said. A lawyer for Clay was not immediately available for comment. Police suspect Clay and his late brother of robbing a pawnshop in Little Rock and were fleeing when their car broke down. They came across Ricks sleeping in his car, allegedly held him hostage and then killed him, police said. An autopsy attributed Ricks' death to a single gunshot wound to the back of his head. Clay and his brother were arrested shortly after in Maryland and convicted of interstate auto theft but could not be linked to the homicide, Lucas said. Clay is being held without bond in Essex County, Delaware, pending an extradition hearing. Lucas said Ricks "was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. His widow and a daughter are still living, and it's good to be able to give them some closure." (Editing by Jon Herskovitz and Sandra Maler)