Kenan Adams-Kinard Claims He Was Buying Crack From Delbert Belton, WWII Vet Beaten To Death

One of two teens suspected of beating a WWII veteran to death is now claiming he was buying crack cocaine from the 88-year-old prior to the incident.
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Kenan Adams-Kinard, 16, told friends that the death of Delbert "Shorty" Belton was the result of a drug deal that turned violent, according to an affidavit from prosecutors obtained NBC News.

Court documents also include a letter, allegedly signed by Adams-Kinard, that stated he and fellow suspect Demetrius Glenn, also 16, were buying a "zip of crack cocaine from Shorty" and then later "proceeded to sock him."

Spokane police, however, stated they "have no evidence to support that" and Glenn's lawyer told NBC that "it doesn't seem plausible to me."

Belton's daughter-in-law, Barbara Belton, called the crack claim "a bunch of crock" and asserted that Belton "was not into drugs."

Belton, who survived a bullet at the Battle of Okinawa, was beaten to death in a parking lot in Spokane, Wash. late on Aug. 21.

He was waiting in his vehicle for a friend outside a pool hall when police say Adams-Kinard and Demetrius Glenn, also 16, beat him and took his wallet. Police described the incident as a random attack, and Belton died Thursday morning from his injuries.

Both Adams-Kinard and Demetrius Glenn, also 16, are charged with murder and are being tried as adults.