Teacher charged in fatal stabbings in Arkansas bounced between schools in 3 states

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A 28-year-old teacher who authorities say admitted to fatally stabbing two hikers he didn’t know in an Arkansas state park bounced between four school districts in three states in recent years.

Andrew James McGann was placed on administrative leave at an elementary school in the Dallas suburb of Flower Mound, Texas, in spring 2023 after concerns were raised about his classroom management. But he passed background checks in two different Oklahoma school districts and had been expected to start a new job in northwest Arkansas on Aug. 11.

McGann has been charged with two counts of capital murder in the killing Saturday of Clinton David Brink, 43, and Cristen Amanda Brink, 41. He made his first appearance on Friday before an Arkansas judge, who ordered McGann to be held without bond at the Washington County Detention Center, assigned him a public defender and scheduled his arraignment for Aug. 25.

Arkansas State Police Col. Mike Hagar said Thursday that authorities are trying to determine a motive for the attack at Devil’s Den, a 2,500-acre state park about 140 miles northwest of Little Rock. Its trails have been closed to the public since Saturday.

State Police arrested McGann on Wednesday at a barbershop in Springdale, about 30 miles north of the park, said Maj. Stacie Rhoads, commander of the department’s criminal investigation division.

The Associated Press left messages at numbers listed for McGann, who has no criminal record.

Officials said the husband was stabbed first, about half a mile (0.8 kilometers) into the park, then the mother ushered her daughters to safety before returning to help her husband. She was also stabbed to death.

Authorities have not said if the girls — ages 7 and 9 — witnessed both their parents being killed. They were not hurt and are being cared for by family members, authorities said. A third daughter was not hiking with her family when the Brinks were killed.

McGann was cooperative during his arrest and admitted to killing the couple soon after, Rhoads said. Police also matched his DNA to blood found at the crime scene. Rhoads described the killings as random.