Man shot and killed Friday night in downtown Kansas City; person of interest in custody

A man was fatally shot in downtown Kansas City on Friday night, according to police.

Officers were dispatched around 9:15 p.m. to 10th and Locust streets and found the gunshot victim in the parking lot of the Express Stop gas station, said Sgt. Jake Becchina, a Kansas City Police Department spokesman.

He was unresponsive when officers arrived, Becchina said. Emergency medical personnel pronounced him dead at the scene.

Preliminary findings of the investigation pointed to an “interaction” in the parking lot of the business between “the victim and one or more suspects,” Becchina said.

Witnesses gave police information that led them to a person of interest who was taken into custody a few blocks away near 10th and Grand Boulevard. Detectives were still working to determine that person’s level of involvement Friday night, Becchina said.

The killing Friday night marked Kansas City’s 94th homicide of 2023, according to data maintained by The Star. Last year, the city saw its second-deadliest year on record with 172 homicides.

Of Kansas City’s growing number of homicides this year, Becchina highlighted a need for peaceful ways to resolve conflicts. He said a large portion of city violence stems from some type of argument.

“If more people settled arguments with words and discussion, and did not pick up a firearm, there would be significantly fewer homicides in Kansas City,” Becchina said. “I can say that for sure.”

Kansas City police were asking that anyone with information about Friday night’s fatal shooting call homicide detectives at 816-234-5043 or the TIPS Hotline anonymously at 816-474-TIPS.