“This is now a murder investigation”: Bodies of missing Oklahoma men Mark Chastain and his friends reportedly found dismembered in river

On the weekend of October 14, Oklahoma authorities discovered the dismembered bodies of 32-year-old Mark Chastain and his three friends in the Deep Fork River.

Besides Mark Chastain, the victims were identified as his 30-year-old brother Billy Chastain, 32-year-old Mike Sparks, and 29-year-old Alex Stevens. They were last seen on October 9, after they all left their hometown of Okmulgee for a bike ride at approximately 8 pm. The bicycles have not been found yet.

Okmulgee Police Chief Joe Prentice spoke of the discovery during a news conference on Monday. He added:

“This is now a murder investigation.”

The Guardian reported that while the first body was discovered on Friday, October 14, the others were recovered over the weekend. Okmulgee police reported that all four victims had been shot and dismembered before their remains were disposed of in the lake.

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Mark Chastain’s body was discovered by a civilian

Okmulgee Police Chief Joe Prentice said that the initial corpse was discovered by a civilian. Prentice told reporters:

“All four bodies were dismembered before being placed in the river and that is what caused the difficulty in determining identity. The river appears to be a dump site. This is now a murder investigation.”

As per CBS, Prentice speculated that the murders occurred at least 5 to 6 days before the bodies were recovered. He said:

“It would take a considerable amount of time to put the bodies in the condition that they were and then dump them in the river.”

He went on to say that while nothing has been confirmed, there may be reason to believe that the four victims were planning to commit a crime at the time of their deaths. A witness, who has not been named, reportedly told authorities that Mark Chastain and his friends had been invited to partake in a lucrative illegal venture.

The witness reportedly told officers:

“(They were offered a chance to) hit a lick big enough for all of them.”

Prentice told reporters that while a suspect has not yet been identified, Mark Chastain's cell phone activity indicated that he may have been at the Okmulgee salvage yard, which allegedly showed "evidence of a violent event."

Prentice stated that the owner of the salvage yard, Joe Kennedy, may lead the Okmulgee authorities towards the truth behind what happened to the men. While Kennedy is not an official suspect, Prentice told reporters that authorities wish to speak with him.

According to CBS, Joe Kennedy himself was reported missing on October 15. His vehicle, a blue PT Cruiser, was discovered in Morris, Oklahoma on Wednesday. As of now, the case remains under investigation.