Man disappears after long standoff with KC police investigating shots fired at group

Police negotiating for the surrender of a man suspected of firing shots toward a group of people early Sunday in Kansas City discovered that the man had disappeared during the standoff.

The standoff lasted more than 7 hours and began shortly after 1 a.m. at apartments in the 1800 block of Topping Avenue, which is near the Blue Valley Recreation Center Park.

Witnesses told police officers that a man came out of one of the apartments and fired shots in their direction. The man then went back inside. No one was injured from the gunfire, according to police.

Officers evacuated several apartments and escorted people to safety. Police called an Operation 100, which is a tactical response when police have a person who refuses to surrender.

Negotiators were brought in to talk the man into surrendering peacefully. After a long time with no phone contact, officers got a search warrant and entered the apartment about 8:30 a.m. They found no one inside.

Police continue to look for the man and asked anyone with information about his whereabouts to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-47-8477).

This story was originally published August 26, 2018 at 8:41 AM.