Arkansas man says machete was intended to scare

Thursday, July 25, 2013

FORT SMITH — A Fort Smith man accused of killing two men with a machete told police in a videotaped interview he wanted only to scare the pair last month.

Gregory Aaron Kinsey, 20, has been charged with two counts of capital murder in the June 26 deaths of Brandon Prince, 39, and Nathan Young, 32. Prosecutors have not said yet whether they will seek the death penalty.

The Southwest Times Record reported Thursday it had obtained a videotape of the interview through the state's Freedom of Information Act. On the four-hour tape, Kinsey told officers he didn't stop striking Young until he heard a gurgling noise.

Kinsey also said on the video he had a confrontation with the men and pulled out the machete to scare them, believing that "they weren't going to let me go."

When an officer asked Kinsey if he had sharpened the machete's blade, he replied, "Indeed." Later in the interview, Kinsey told officers he had acted out of instinct.

Kinsey's defense team had asked that police not release the file, fearing that publicity about the case could taint a jury pool.

Sebastian County Circuit Judge Stephen Tabor said he was confident an unbiased panel could be found and ordered the material to be released, except for certain "disturbing" crime scene photos and cellphone videos.

A police report released previously said Kinsey and the two men had a confrontation while Kinsey was walking home from a grocery store. It wasn't clear why Kinsey had a machete.

That report said Kinsey told officers that one of the victims, after falling to the ground, looked up at him and said, "You win." Kinsey allegedly threatened three people nearby, picked up his groceries and left.

Kinsey's mother, Kimberley LeClaire, told the Times Record last month her son was "vastly intelligent" and had been bullied in school.

photo

Fort Smith, Ark., Police Departm

Gregory Aaron Kinsey is seen in an undated photo provided by the Fort Smith, Ark., Police Department. Kinsey, 20, is a suspect in a machete attack that killed two men Wednesday, June 26, 2013 at a duplex in Fort Smith, Ark. Kinsay was arrested Wednesday at his mother's home, and is being held on two county of capitol murder. (AP Photo/Fort Smith, Ark., Police Department)