Oklahoma authorities charge man in killing of 24-year-old found dead in Kansas City
Authorities in Oklahoma have charged a 26-year-old man with first-degree murder in the killing of Adam “A.J.” Blackstock Jr., whose body was discovered 11 months ago in the cargo bay of his SUV after it was towed out of a Kansas City driveway.
Kainon K. Singleton, of Grandview, is accused of killing Blackstock, 24, on Jan. 16 in rural Creek County, Oklahoma, which is part of the Tulsa metropolitan area. He has been held in the Jackson County jail since March for allegedly fleeing from and shooting at police.
In a statement Wednesday, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation said its agents and Kansas City detectives had determined Blackstock traveled to Oklahoma with Singleton on Jan. 16. Blackstock was killed in the Sand Springs area, authorities say, before his body was found roughly 270 miles away in Kansas City the next day.
The Oklahoma agency has been involved in the investigation alongside Kansas City police since early March. A spokesman for the state agency said its agents are still investigating the case.
The Creek County District Attorney’s Office filed the charges of murder and possession of a stolen vehicle against Singleton on Monday. Online court records show an arrest warrant calls for Singleton to be held in Oklahoma without bond.
Blackstock, whose son was 18 months old when he went missing earlier this year, has been remembered by family as a bright and funny young man. He was also a beloved member of Glory Bible Fellowship International Church, based in Lee’s Summit, where his parents Adam Blackstock Sr. and Adrinne Blackstock both serve as ministers.
Reached by phone Wednesday, the Blackstocks said they were visiting with extended family when they heard the news that Singleton had been charged in their son’s death. They said they were pleased with the work of Kansas City police and authorities in Oklahoma, saying they had long been praying for the outcome.
“We don’t have closure, but at least we have the start of justice,” Adam Blackstock Sr. said.
Kansas City police began investigating the case after officers were called to the 4600 block of Montgall Avenue by Adam Blackstock Sr., who was attempting to track down his missing son.
Officers were dispatched to the area on a reported property dispute as the father had used a GPS application to track his son’s SUV to a stranger’s driveway in Kansas City.
The SUV was covered by a gray tarp at the time. As the officers were on scene, Blackstock Sr. told them it was his missing son’s vehicle, based on the real-time location information, and remote started it for them.
Officers knocked on the door of the home where the SUV was parked and spoke with a resident, who told them the vehicle belonged to her uncle. She signed paperwork giving permission for police to take the vehicle, and a tow truck was requested to move it.
Before the SUV was towed, officers noticed a bottle of cleaning product on the ground nearby, according to court records. There was also a bullet hole in the front driver’s side seat and blood on the floorboards.
Afterward, the SUV was hooked up to a city tow truck and brought to East Patrol at 2640 Prospect Ave. as officers followed behind. It was taken there with a hold for Grandview police, where a missing person’s report was to be opened.
Police opened the cargo area and found Blackstock’s body before the SUV was towed a second time. The Star reported in January that a forensics expert had questioned the methods of police that day, saying a tow of the vehicle under those circumstances was “negligent” and a missed opportunity to immediately treat the residence as a crime scene.
In March, Singleton was arrested and charged in Jackson County with five felony charges, including first-degree assault, for alleged crimes related to a police chase that ended in Grandview.
An officer attempted to pull over a vehicle Singleton was driving that had been part of a multi-agency burglary investigation and was under surveillance in Kansas City, according to court records filed in that case.
During the police chase, Singleton allegedly fired shots at a Cass County Sheriff’s Office deputy while driving. He has been held in the Jackson County jail on a $250,000 bond since then.
Following the charges filed against Singleton in Oklahoma, Capt. Corey Carlisle, a KCPD spokesman, said in a statement Wednesday that Blackstock’s homicide has been removed from the city’s official homicide count.
