Man charged in 2008 deaths of two girls near Weleetka

Kevin Sweat, who was being held for another murder when the new charges were filed Friday, is now charged in the June 8, 2008, shooting deaths of Taylor Dawn Paschal-Placker, 13, and Skyla Jade Whitaker, 11.

Authorities announced the charges during a news conference Friday, bringing a sense of closure to one of the highest-profile unsolved murders in years.

Sweat, who is being held without bail in Seminole County jail, already was facing a murder charge in the death of Ashley Taylor, 23.

Taylor and Sweat, according to family members, were a couple. Taylor's charred remains were found Aug. 4 on property belonging to Sweat's father, court documents show.

Okfuskee County District Attorney Max Cook said prosecutors will seek the death penalty in the slayings of the two girls.

Authorities released an affidavit of an interview Sweat gave Sept. 13 to an Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation agent.

During the interview, Sweat referred to the girls as “monsters” and said he “panicked” when they came toward his car, so he grabbed a Glock .40-caliber handgun out of his glove box, shot them and then grabbed a .22-caliber gun and shot them again, agent Kurt Titsworth said.

The best friends had gone for a walk to Bad Creek Bridge on County Line Road and were shot a combined total of 13 times as they returned.

Investigators were able to match the shell casings because the gun previously was owned by the Baltimore Police Department, which had returned the weapon to the manufacturer for unspecified reasons some time before 2006, according to court documents.

Baltimore police retained a single casing from the gun, which investigators were able to match to casings found at the crime scene.