Capital murder charges filed in Kansas City, Kansas mass shooting, triple homicide
Suspects in a mass shooting a Kansas City, Kansas, bar, and a recent triple homicide are now charged with capital murder and could face the death penalty, the Wyandotte County district attorney announced Wednesday.
Wyandotte County District Attorney Mark Dupree Sr. released the amended charges against three men in two separate cases during a news conference.
Dupree first addressed the mass shooting that killed four people and wounded five others Oct. 6 at the Tequila KC bar near 10th Street and Central Avenue.
Two men, Hugo Villanueva-Morales, 30, of Kansas City, Kansas, and Javier Alatorre, 24, of Kansas City, were initially charged with four counts of first-degree murder. The victims who died in the shooting were Everardo Meza, 29, Alfredo Calderon Jr, 29, Francisco Garcia Anaya, 34, and Martin Rodriguez-Gonzalez, 58.
Alatorre was arrested quickly after the shooting. Villanueva-Morales fled to Mexico, where he was arrested and was recently brought back to the metro area to face charges. Both remain in the county jail.
Dupree said Wednesday that Villanueva-Moreales and Alatorre are now each charged with capital murder for the four deaths. The men are also charged with attempted murder, six counts of aggravated battery, one count of aggravated assault and two counts of criminal possession of a firearm, according to amended charging information filed in district court.
Their next court date is scheduled Feb. 4. Attorneys for both men could not be immediately reached for comment late Wednesday afternoon.
Suspect in triple homicide charged
The district attorney’s office also announced amended charges against Ismael Caballero in the deaths of a Kansas City, Kansas, mother and her two children. Their bodies were found in a burning home at 29 N. Mill St. on Dec. 30. Kansas City, Kansas, police were investigating the deaths as homicides but have not said how the three victims died.
Caballero, 31, is charged in district court with capital murder for the deaths of the two children, Amerikha Rodriguez, 14, and Jean Carlo Rodriguez, 10, and is charged with second-degree murder for the death of their 31-year-old mother, Yazmin Rodriguez-Santilla. He is also charged with arson for the burning of the home.
Police took Caballero into custody hours after fire crews found the bodies of three victims. Caballero initially faced three counts of first-degree murder and two counts of arson before the charges were amended Wednesday.
Information on Caballero’s next court date was not yet available Wednesday afternoon. An attorney for Caballero has not yet been listed.
Cases pending in Wyandotte County
Dupree credited local, state and federal authorities with locating and apprehending suspects in both cases.
As both cases are pending in district court, Dupree said his office will have until seven days after formal arraignments to announce his decision about whether to pursue the death penalty against any of the men.
“That is something that I do not take lightly and that I will speak to all of the family members more about,” Dupree told reporters.
“We will get through this tragedy together. We will continue to move forward together in unity in the pursuit of justice and for the betterment of all our neighborhoods. We will not tolerate this type of violence in our community and this type of violence will be met with the full force of the law.”
This story was originally published January 8, 2020 at 5:29 PM.
