Baton Rouge Black Men Killings: Hitler Speech Found In Suspect's Home, Source Says

BATON ROUGE, LA — A white Baton Rouge man was arrested and will be charged with murder in the separate shooting deaths of two black men — attacks that police said might have been racially motivated.

Kenneth James Gleason, 23, is accused of killing the two men, Interim Police Chief Jonny Dunnam said Tuesday. He didn't immediately say why he thought Gleason killed the men. A homeless man and a dishwasher were both shot on separate days by a gunman in a car. They were each shot again multiple times as they lay on the ground.

Police arrested Gleason over the weekend on drug charges. He was freed on bail late Sunday despite authorities considering him a "person of interest" in the shootings. It's unclear if Gleason has an attorney. Attempts to reach him and his immediate family have not been successful. (For more information on Gleason's case and other Baton Rouge stories, subscribe to Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

Louisiana authorities say Gleason has been connected to a third shooting as well, in which gunshots were fired at the house of an African-American family in his neighborhood. No one died in that shooting, which happened before the other two deaths.

Dunnam said he was confident Gleason "would have killed again" given the opportunity.

Authorities found a copy of an Adolph Hitler speech during a search of Gleason's home over the weekend, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was ongoing.

Photo credit: East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office via AP