OKMULGEE, Okla. — The pulse of Okmulgee is usually felt in the heart of downtown, with locals walking, shopping, and dining, but Monday its streets were desolate.
2 News Oklahoma talked with community members on Monday as they say their hearts were aching and hurting for the four men who were shot, dismembered and thrown into the Deep Fork River. Their remains were found Friday after several days of multiple agencies searching.
The news left many locals speechless, while others were horrified that such a gruesome tragedy would happen in their hometown.
MORE >>> Okmulgee police confirm four missing men found murdered
We stopped at Okmulgee's Sixth Street Hub, that's where we found Alex Rosson. He said everybody in town knows each other and when tragedy strikes, word quickly spreads.
Rosson said he was alarmed when he first learned about the cruel details, especially because it happened so close to home.
“I know when I first heard about it, I guess the place where the bodies were found were close to where I like to go fishing so I was just over there a few days before this all came through… so a friend texted me the story and was like 'dude, we were just out here fishing,'" Rosson said.
Just up the road, we talked to Rich McKay about what happened.
“There’s been several things that happened around here, you know, but to this scale with this many people no, I’ve never heard anything like this," McKay said.
“It makes me feel sad, you know…it’s just different times you know. I’m concerned for my son, you know. I don’t like him going out when all this was going on. I’m really concerned about his safety and his friends."
McKay said he knew Mike Sparks, one of the four victims and remembers him riding his bike. He said it's too hard to process it all.
“I know that a lot of people are shocked just because of the matter of the way they did these boys… it’s a shame, they didn’t deserve that." McKay said.
He said he wanted to make sure the families of the four victims knew his heart was with them.
“I’m sorry for your loss, you know and everything. It shouldn’t have happened like that."
In the midst of this shocking violence, Rosson is hoping to restore the heartbeat of the community one prayer at a time.
“It’s always important to pray for your community," Rosson said.
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