Oklahoma man confesses to killing, dismembering 4 men who were 'stealing from him,' prosecutors say

Deep Fork River where the bodies were found on Wed, Oct. 19, 2022, in Okmulgee.
Deep Fork River where the bodies were found on Wed, Oct. 19, 2022, in Okmulgee.
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OKMULGEE, Okla. – The man authorities initially called a person of interest in the killings and dismembering of four men in Oklahoma confessed to the brutal October slayings, an affidavit unsealed Thursday said.

Joseph Lloyd Kennedy II had been described a person of interest in the case. Authorities say he fled to Florida after investigators questioned him about four men who were found dead after being shot, dismembered and dumped in the Deep Fork River near Okmulgee, about 40 miles south of Tulsa.

The men, Mark Chastain, 32; Billy Chastain, 30; Mike Sparks, 32; and Alex Stevens, 29, were reported missing by family members after they left on bicycles Oct. 9 and did not return.

Kennedy, 67, confessed to the killings, telling a friend the men "were stealing from him" so he killed them and "cut them up," according to a prosecutor's affidavit. He's being held on a $10 million bond, though formal charges haven't been filed against him in the killings.

More on the case: Court documents outline timeline in Oklahoma dismemberment case 

Background: Person of interest arrested in Florida after four dismembered bodies recovered from Oklahoma river

The prosecutor's affidavit was filed in Okmulgee County district court on Nov. 15 in an effort to increase Kennedy's bond to $10 million from $500,000. A judge unsealed the affidavit Thursday after Kennedy's attorneys pushed for an explanation about why their client's bond had been increased so much.

In the affidavit, Assistant District Attorney Carmen Rainbolt said Kennedy already had fled Oklahoma once and prosecutors believed he would flee again if he were released from custody.

Initially, Police Chief Joe Prentice said investigators believed the four slain men may have planned to “commit some type of criminal act” when they left a home in the area.

He said a witness told investigators the men were invited to “hit a lick big enough for all of them." Authorities did not know what criminal act was planned or where it was planned, Prentice said.

Investigators searched a scrap yard where “nothing remarkable was observed,” but an adjoining property contained evidence of a “violent event,” Prentice said.

Kennedy, 67, owns a salvage yard in the area and was questioned by authorities after the slayings, Prentice said in October. He was cooperative with authorities and denied knowing the four victims, Prentice added.

Afterward, Kennedy went missing. His vehicle was found behind a business in the area.

He was arrested Oct. 17 in Daytona Beach Shores, Florida, while driving a stolen vehicle, according to Prentice. He was later extradited to Oklahoma.

Kennedy has not been formally charged, but Okmulgee County Jail records show he is being held in connection with a 2012 charge of assault and battery with a deadly weapon for which he was still on probation.

Contributing: Josh Dulaney and Aspen Ford, The Oklahoman; Associated Press

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This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Joseph Kennedy confesses to killing, dismembering 4 Oklahoma men