Killings Of 2 Black Men In Baton Rouge Could Be Racially Motivated

BATON ROUGE, LA — A 23-year-old man being held by police in Baton Rouge on drug charges is a person of interest in two recent killings of black men in the city and authorities believe the killings could be racially motivated, according to media reports.

Kenneth Gleason, 23, is currently being held on drug charges, jail records show.

The Baton Rouge Advocate reports that police say they do not yet have enough evidence to arrest the man for the killings. Baton Rouge Sgt. L'Jean McKneely told the paper on Sunday that Gleason remains a person of interest in the killings. (For updates on this story and more Baton Rouge news, subscribe to the Baton Rouge Patch.)

"We believe (the shootings) could possibly be racially motivated," McKneely told The Advocate, while noting that investigators are still exploring other possibilities. McKneely also told the paper that police have collected circumstantial evidence in the case.

The two shootings occurred earlier this week. In the first shooting, a 59-year-old man believed to be homeless, was killed around 10:30 p.m. Bruce Cofield died at the scene from apparent gunshot injuries. In the second shooting that occurred on Thursday, 49-year-old Donald Smart was found lying in the roadway just after 11 p.m. suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Smart died at the scene.

Both killings were also carried out in "similar ways," according to a report in The Associated Press.

Mckneely told The Associated Press that in both shootings the suspect fired from his car, then walked up to the victims as they were lying on the ground and fired again multiple times. He says police haven't found any relationship between the suspect in the killings, Kenneth Gleason, and the victims.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this story.

Patch will update this report.

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