Victim of Johnson County rolling shooting starts GoFundMe: ‘We don’t feel safe’
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Victim shot five times during a Jeep pursuit; remains hospitalized and recovering.
- Police released Jeep photo (KS plate 9103ACY) and seek camera footage via special link.
- Victim launched GoFundMe to fund relocation, moving costs and family care.
The victim in the rolling shooting that passed through two Johnson County cities Sunday evening before ending in a fiery crash had been picked up by a ride-sharing service to go to a store, according to a GoFundMe fundraising page.
The victim, who created the fundraising page Thursday afternoon, said she had called an Uber to take her to the store a short distance from her home. As they left, a Jeep pulled out of her apartment complex and began to follow them.
“At first, I thought it was just a coincidence, but soon it became clear that the car was intentionally following us,” the victim said on the fundraising page. The Star is not naming her because no suspects have been arrested.
Although the Uber driver tried to get away, the Jeep chased them, eventually crossing into Kansas. As they exited the highway, someone in the Jeep started shooting at them, the victim said.
The victim said on the GoFundMe page that she had been shot five times and remained in the hospital, fighting for her life as she recovered from her injuries.
Capt. Josh Putthoff, a spokesman with the Prairie Village Police Department, said Friday that there was no new information, but he expected to release a joint statement with the Overland Park Police Department in the near future.
No arrests have been made, and there were no new developments, said Officer John Lacy, a spokesman for the Overland Park Police Department.
The shooting occurred around 6:50 p.m. Sunday in the 9900 block of Roe Avenue and ended about 1.5 miles north in a fiery crash at Franklin Park in the 8700 block of Roe Avenue.
An investigation into the shooting found that the driver picked up the shooting victim in Kansas City. The driver noticed they were being followed by the Jeep shortly thereafter.
The driver tried to evade the Jeep and eventually turned onto Roe. The pursuing Jeep caught up and fired multiple shots at the victims.
A large number of bullets were fired, concentrated in the area of 99th and Roe, 95th and Roe, and at Franklin Park at 87th and Roe, police said.
Prairie Village police this week released a photo of the red or maroon Jeep Grand Cherokee with Kansas license plate 9103ACY that they believe was involved.
They also asked people and businesses to check their cameras along the route, starting at Interstate 435 and Roe north to Sommerset Drive, at the north end of Franklin Park, as well as Roe and Sommerset to West 83rd Street and West 83rd east to State Line Road.
Those who captured video of the Jeep are asked to submit it to the Prairie Village Police Department via a special link or QR Code.
The victim had just moved into her apartment in February, hoping to build a safe home for her kids, she said on the GoFundMe fundraising page.
“Now, after this terrifying attack, we don’t feel safe at all,” she said. “My kids are scared, and I don’t want to go back to our apartment. We have nowhere else to go, and I’m desperate to find a safer place for us to live.”
She started the fundraising page to help find a new, safer home, cover moving costs, and provide for her children while she recovers.
As of mid-afternoon Friday, the page had raised more than $1,400.
Anyone with information is asked to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477). They can also call the Overland Park Police Department at 913-344-8750 or the Prairie Village Police Department at 913-642-6868.
