No death penalty sought in Durham minister's slaying

Orange County District Attorney Jim Woodall said Thursday that he has no plans to pursue the death penalty against Matthew John Reed in the August death of a Durham minister.

Reed, 36, of Raleigh, was arrested Aug. 10 after he led police to the body of Kent Torrey Hinkson in Eno River State Park.

Hinkson, 71, had disappeared six days earlier after he left his Durham home to run errands, family members have said.

According to a search warrant released last week in the investigation, Reed told his mother and his brother-in-law that he had killed Hinkson after "something had gotten out of hand, and it had to do with sex, money and a person with a prominent position in the community."

Reed told his relatives that he tried to blackmail Hinkson not to tell the minister's wife about their meeting, according to the search warrant.