Man accused of killing North Kansas City police officer appears in court, enters plea
Joshua Rocha, accused of killing a North Kansas City cop after a traffic stop last month, pleaded not guilty during his arraignment Thursday in Clay County Court.
Benches inside the courtroom were filled Thursday, including by many members of law enforcement, as Rocha made his first court appearance before District Judge Daniel P. Chamberlain since a grand jury returned a two-count indictment against him.
Defense attorneys for Rocha requested a waiver of the reading of charges, and Rocha did not speak during the one-minute hearing.
Rocha, 24, of Kansas City, was charged by Clay County prosecutors last month with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the killing of North Kansas City Police Officer Daniel Vasquez. Earlier this week a grand jury returned an indictment on those charges.
On the morning of July 19, Vasquez was out on patrol when he pulled over a sedan with an expired temporary license plate near the intersection of 21st Street and Clay Avenue. As he approached the driver’s side window, he was struck by gunfire and then shot twice more as he lay in the street, authorities have said.
A statewide alert was issued searching for the suspect vehicle in the aftermath of the shooting. Hours later, Rocha walked into a Clay County government building and told an employee he wished to surrender for committing murder. In the parking lot police found the suspect vehicle they had been searching for, which had an AR-style weapon on the front passenger seat in plain view.
Kansas City police detectives led the investigation. During a police interview, Rocha described in detail the events leading up to the shooting and allegedly demonstrated how he fired at Vasquez with his American Tactical-brand firearm, described in court papers as an AR-style weapon. At the time, he said, he was on his way to the store to purchase ammunition.
Rocha allegedly told detectives at the time that he shot Vasquez because he did not want to go to jail that day or have his car towed.
As police were searching for Rocha that day, they were also led to a residence in the Northland where Rocha had been staying with his mother. During a police interview, the woman recalled seeing her son come home in an apparent state of panic, saying he told her: “I really (expletive) up this time and I shot a police officer.”
She also told investigators he was concerned about being incarcerated for having a fully automatic assault rifle that “he made” and that her son made other guns at the residence they shared. Investigators searching the home reported finding firearm components, a 3D printer, and a 3D printed handgun.
In his obituary, family and friends remembered Vasquez as a man whose lifelong dream was to one day become a police officer. He was relatively new to the police force, having graduated from the KCPD Regional Police Academy in July 2021.
