North Kansas City man, 19, charged in October killing of 18-year-old
A North Kansas City man has been charged with murder in a fatal altercation in Kansas City’s East Blue Valley neighborhood in October.
Mikael Hickman-Perry, 19, faces charges of second-degree murder and armed criminal action for his alleged role in the death of Christopher Avila, 18.
Kansas City police officers responded to the intersection of East 17th Street and Cambridge Avenue around 5:30 a.m. on Oct. 24, 2024. Responding officers discovered Avila unresponsive on the street with head wounds, as well as gunshot wounds to his left shoulder and back. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Multiple witnesses stated they heard an argument in the area between about 10:25 and 10:40 the previous night, followed by several gunshots, according to court documents.
Throughout the night of Oct. 23 and early morning of Oct. 24, Avila’s family was unable to reach him by phone or track his location with the Life360 app, according to court documents. Relatives told police detectives they last saw Avila leaving home earlier that night in the red-orange Jeep known to belong to Hickman-Perry, court documents read.
Hickman-Perry’s mother, who said she spoke with her son just after the shooting, told police detectives that Hickman-Perry, Avila and another young man had been smoking marijuana in her son’s car just before the shooting. She was told that Avila had attempted to steal the bag of drugs and that Hickman-Perry had been hit in the head during an ensuing scuffle, which he did not fully remember.
Hickman-Perry’s girlfriend also talked to police after allegedly speaking with Hickman-Perry the night of the shooting. According to court documents, she said Hickman-Perry told her he was smoking marijuana with a friend when the friend asked to see a gun, and that “everything went left” when someone in the car started “acting crazy.”
After Avila’s death, Kansas City police detectives drove to Hickman-Perry’s apartment complex in North Kansas City, where they allegedly saw the brightly colored Jeep in the parking lot, according to court records.
When Hickman-Perry left the building later that morning, detectives followed him and several associates to a gas station in Lawrence, where they arrested him, according to court documents. Police said they found the Jeep with a significant amount of blood splatter inside, which someone looked to have tried to clean, court documents read.
Avila, who would have started his senior year of high school in the fall, is survived by his mother and two brothers. A hardworking teen with an “infectious smile and kind spirit,” Avila was extremely close to his family and valued kindness and compassion, according to an obituary shared online.
“ Christopher was a bright light in the lives of all who crossed his path,” Avila’s obituary reads. “His passing leaves a void that cannot be filled, but his legacy of love and positivity will live on in the hearts of those who were lucky enough to have known him.”
Hickman-Perry graduated from North Kansas City High School in 2024. He is being held on a $100,000 bond. His next appearance in Jackson County court has not yet been scheduled.
Avila’s death was Kansas City’s 128th homicide of 2024, according to data collected by The Star. At the same time last year, 156 homicides had been reported in the city.
Previous reporting by The Star’s Kendrick Calfee contributed to this article.
