Man admitted road rage killing in KC. Plea deal lets him take lesser charge
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Richard Guerrero pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in 2024 shooting.
- Prosecutors amended charges as trial jury selection was set to begin Monday.
- Sentencing scheduled for Oct. 20.
A Kansas City, Kansas, man pleaded guilty Thursday in Jackson County Circuit Court, admitting to fatally shooting a 20-year-old man during a road rage altercation on Southwest Boulevard last year, according to court documents.
Richard M. Guerrero, 22, pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter and armed criminal action in the shooting of Adrian “Tony” Velez-Esparza in late June 2024.
Prosecutors initially charged Guerrero with second-degree murder, two counts of armed criminal action, and unlawful use of a weapon. However, prosecutors amended the murder charge last week to voluntary manslaughter. After the plea, prosecutors dismissed the unlawful use of a weapon charge and one count of armed criminal action.
According to the standard sentencing ranges in Missouri, charges of voluntary manslaughter and first offense for armed criminal action have a maximum of 15 years in prison on each charge. The plea came just days before Guerrero was scheduled to stand trial; jury selection was set to begin Monday.
Sentencing is set for Oct. 20.
Surveillance video links Guerrero to fatal shooting
According to court documents, police responded to the shooting around 7:25 p.m. on June 29, 2024, in the 700 block of Southwest Boulevard.
There, officers found Velez-Esparza in the driver’s seat of a black Acura sedan suffering from a gunshot wound to the back of his head. An ambulance took him to a hospital, where he died days later.
A witness told detectives that he was stopped at a red light when he saw the dark-colored Chevrolet Malibu and the Acura stop at the red light. The driver of the Acura made a U-turn and stopped near the Chevrolet.
The witness told police he saw the driver stick their elbow out of the window, and then he heard two shots being fired. The Acura then slowly rolled until it crashed into the wall. The driver of the Chevrolet drove away.
Security camera footage from the area showed two vehicles driving at high speeds, with the Acura appearing to chase the Chevrolet, according to court documents. Detectives found additional surveillance video of the Chevrolet driving away from the shooting and were able to get the license plate number on the Chevrolet.
The Kansas license plate showed Guerrero was the owner of the vehicle. Detectives issued an advisory for the car, asking patrol officers to notify detectives if they found the vehicle.
Says he felt threatened, then shot Velez-Esparza
On July 12, 2024, Johnson County sheriff’s deputies and Kansas Highway Patrol troopers had stopped the vehicle on Interstate 35 near West 67th Street in Merriam. Kansas City detectives responded and confirmed the car was the Chevrolet Malibu seen in the surveillance videos.
During an interview with detectives, Guerrero allegedly said on the evening of the shooting, he and a friend were driving on Southwest Boulevard when a black Acura pulled up beside them.
The driver yelled at Guerrero and began to “chase” them. Guerrero said Velez-Esparza threw water bottles at his car. As they came to a stop near La Bodega, Velez-Esparza threw another water bottle at Guerrero’s car.
Guerrero told detectives that he felt threatened and pulled out a 9mm handgun from the center console. He told detectives that he then shot Velez-Esparza and drove home.
Guerrero told detectives that at no time did he see Velez-Esparza with a weapon. Detectives searched Velez-Esparza’s car and did not find a weapon, according to court documents
This story was originally published September 8, 2025 at 11:53 AM.
