A suspect who worked as a teacher in public schools has been arrested in the killings of a couple who were attacked on an Arkansas hiking trail Saturday, state police said Wednesday.
James Andrew McGann, 28, of Springdale, was arrested at 4:57 p.m. Wednesday at a business in Springdale and is charged with two counts of capital murder, Arkansas State Police said in a statement.
He is accused of killing Clinton David Brink, 43, and Cristen Amanda Brink, 41, who were attacked Saturday afternoon in front of their daughters while they were hiking at Devil’s Den State Park, police have said.
He was arrested at a barber shop after a dayslong manhunt, police said.
Col. Mike Hagar, the state police director, thanked state police for working long hours in the search for a suspect, as well as federal agencies for their assistance.
"Because of their hard work and investigative skill, we were able to take a monster off the streets and bring relief to those two precious girls and the rest of our citizens," Hagar said.
Authorities did not mention a suspected motive Wednesday or how the killings occurred.
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“We’re still exploring and determining exactly what that motive was,” Arkansas State Police Maj. Stacie Rhoads told reporters Wednesday night.
McGann had recently moved to Arkansas from Oklahoma and had gotten a job to work at a local school, she said.
He was a teacher candidate hired for the upcoming school year at Springdale Public Schools, but had not yet begun official employment, district superintendent Jared Cleveland said in a statement. The district said McGann “has not at any time come into contact with Springdale students or the families we serve.”
He had previously worked from summer of 2024 to May 2025 at Sand Springs Public Schools in Oklahoma, but at the end of the school year resigned his position to move out of state, according to that district.
McGann had passed a mandatory background check for his employment at Sand Springs Public Schools as well as for the Oklahoma State Department of Education.
“Our hearts are with the family and loved ones who have suffered this tragic loss,” Sand Springs Public Schools said.
He had also worked as a teacher for Broken Arrow Public Schools in Oklahoma during the 2023-2024 school year as a 5th grade teacher at Spring Creek Elementary. At the end of the school year he left “of his own accord to work out of state,” the district said, noting he also passed legally required background checks prior to his hiring.
The victims' daughters are 7 and 9 years old. They were not injured and are safe with family members, officials said.
Katrina Hutchins, Clinton Brink’s sister, said they moved to the state about three weeks ago.
State police were notified about the killings at Devil's Den shortly before 3 p.m. Saturday. Officials released a sketch of a suspect and asked the public for help. They said witnesses saw a black, four-door sedan with tape partly covering its license plate.
"Clinton and Cristen died heroes, protecting their little girls and they deserve justice. They will forever live on in all of our hearts,” the family said in an earlier statement.
Rhoads said police were declining to release much information about what led to McGann’s arrest Wednesday.
“We still have a lot of work to do in terms of securing a conviction, because that’s our next big focus right now,” she said.
It was not immediately clear whether McGann had an attorney who could speak on his behalf. A phone number for any relatives could not be found in online public records Wednesday night.
Devil's Den State Park is around 26 miles south of Springdale, a city of around 84,000 in the northwestern part of the state.
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said northwest Arkansas has been “a community that has been absolutely heartbroken."
“Our entire state is grieving for the tragic loss and senseless and horrific crime that’s taken place,” she said. She asked Arkansans to pray for the victims' family.
