‘Someone knows something’: Police want answers in KC shooting that killed 1-year-old
The parents of a 1-year-old boy who was killed Monday afternoon were the two injured adults in the triple shooting, the Kansas City Police Department said Tuesday.
Tyron Payton was fatally shot in the 2900 block of East 33rd Street while sitting in the backseat of a vehicle.
His parents, who were in the front seats of the car, were also struck.
Police said they were in stable condition and remain hospitalized.
A fourth person in the car was not hit by a spray of gunfire that left the car riddled with bullet holes.
The driver went to a fire station at 32nd and Indiana and asked for help.
Firefighters found the three victims who were transported to a hospital where Tyron died.
On Tuesday, community members and activists gathered at the fire station to express grief and outrage.
“My heart dropped,” organizer Ron Hunt said of learning about the homicide. “It seems like we have become in a place of normalcy when things like this happen.”
Bishop Tony Caldwell, of the Eternal Life Church & Family Living Center, said violence happens because adults can’t sit down and resolve their problems.
“When’s it going to stop?” he said. “When are we as men in the community, and adults in the community, say enough is enough?”
This year is on pace to become the deadliest year on record in Kansas City. Tyron’s death was the 148th homicide this year. At this time last year, there had been 114 homicides.
Police said they need the public’s help to solve the case.
“Someone knows something,” Sgt. Jake Becchina said in a news release. “The right thing to do is turn in the person responsible for this murder.”
Anyone with information is asked to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-8477. A $25,000 reward is available for information leading to an arrest.
This story was originally published September 22, 2020 at 12:58 PM.
