Washington ( CNN ) -- Are James V. McVay 's statements the shocking confessions of a man who planned to kill the president ? The exaggerated claims of someone seeking attention ? The rantings of a lunatic ? Police , prosecutors and others are asking those questions after McVay , 41 , was charged in the vicious stabbing death of a 75-year-old woman in Sioux Falls , South Dakota . Stopped by police Saturday near Madison , Wisconsin , some 450 miles away from the killing , McVay confessed not only to the stabbing , but to a crime he said he hoped to commit : the assassination of a president . In statements to police , and in an unusual jailhouse interview with reporters , McVay said : . -- He had spent two years while in prison developing a plan . -- He planned , first , to kill someone in Sioux Falls and steal that person 's vehicle to drive to Madison . -- In Madison , he would break into another house to kill the occupants and steal their vehicle , or he would ambush a Madison police officer to steal that officer 's gun . -- He planned to travel through Chicago , stopping again in Indianapolis to kill people and steal a vehicle to drive to Washington . `` I 'm going to kill and kill until I get him , '' he told police , referring to President Obama . `` One of his favorite pastimes , golfing ; I was going to get him at the golf range , '' McVay said in a remorseless interview with WKOW-TV reporter Tony Galli . He said the Sioux Falls victim , Maybelle Fetters Schein , was `` collateral damage . '' It was not the first time McVay had made threats of this nature . In 2009 , following an arrest involving another stolen car , McVay told police he had planned to travel to Washington where he intended to harm Vice President Joe Biden . Police notified the U.S. Secret Service , who twice questioned McVay , as well as family members and acquaintances . During the second interview , McVay recanted his statement about wanting to harm the vice president , a spokesman with the Secret Service said . Court documents provide a detailed account of McVay 's alleged actions during the past week , when he again came to the attention of authorities . According to a police affidavit , police were sent to Schein 's Sioux Falls home Saturday afternoon after a report of a deceased person . They found a garden tool and a cardboard box propping open the garage door , and a small figurine propping open the door between the garage and the living area . Schein was in her bedroom , dead of knife wounds to the neck . The victim 's white 2007 Buick Lucerne was missing . Police soon learned the car was equipped with an OnStar device that allowed GPS tracking of the vehicle , the affidavit says . Investigators contacted OnStar , learned the car was near Madison , Wisconsin , and asked police there to stop it . The driver at first refused to stop , and police chased the car , eventually using a spike strip to bring it to a halt , police said . The driver , McVay , `` had a brief standoff with the officers before being taken into custody , '' police said . As McVay was being placed in a patrol car , he made an unsolicited comment . `` He said that he had 'killed an old lady ' by stabbing her , '' and that he had stolen her car , police said . McVay waived his right to remain silent and continued talking , police said , outlining his plan to travel to Washington to kill Obama . McVay said he spent two years developing the plan , `` solidifying '' the plan about two weeks earlier when he discovered he was going to be released from South Dakota State Penitentiary to a halfway house . He said he walked away from the Sioux Falls halfway house on Friday , stole clothes and camping knives from a Walmart , and slept under a bridge for the night . On Saturday he awoke , walked into a nearby neighborhood , slipped into a partially open garage , used the knife to unlock the door to the residence , killed Schein and stole her car , according to his account in the affidavit . McVay is charged with premeditated murder , first degree murder and four burglary-related counts . He is represented by a state public defender , who could not be immediately reached Thursday . This week , when Wisconsin TV reporters interviewed McVay , he told them of the earlier interrogations by the Secret Service . `` I played the game that I did n't have any homicidal intentions and I talked to Secret Service , '' he said . But , McVay told the reporters , his feelings hardened against Biden and Obama while he was in solitary confinement . McVay cited Obama 's economic policies and other moves as a basis for the assassination plot , but also said alien forces were using Obama as a `` puppet , '' WKOW reported . On Thursday , a Wisconsin judge ordered a competency evaluation of McVay . This week , Secret Service agents again interviewed McVay . But the Secret Service officials declined to say whether they believe McVay intended to attempt an assassination . And a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney 's office said the office is reviewing the case , but no decision on federal charges has been made .
James V. McVay says a South Dakota slaying was the first step in his plan . The Associated Press contributed to this report. A judge orders a competency evaluation of McVay .