‘The job is done’: Kansas City man accused in August shooting death at Kessler Park
A Kansas City man is accused of murder in a fatal shooting that unfolded last month in Kessler Park in the city’s Pendleton Heights neighborhood.
Thomas Graham, 44, is charged in Jackson County Circuit Court with second-degree murder and armed criminal action in the killing of 48-year-old Akil Collins, court records show. He was arrested Wednesday night.
On Aug. 29, around 7:15 p.m., Kansas City police officers were dispatched to the 200 block of Wabash Avenue on a call for medical assistance. Officers arrived to find a man dead inside Kessler Park, near East Reservoir Drive north of Lexington Avenue, next to a portable toilet.
The victim, Collins, had several apparent gunshot injuries and his death was determined by Jackson County medical examiners to be a homicide.
That night, as detectives were attempting to make a next of kin notification, they were told that Collins was being evicted from his apartment in the 300 block of Bellefontaine Avenue. A manager for the apartment building told them Collins’ vehicle was still parked nearby, and that Collins had been seen with two women and a man as Collins was having his property removed from the location.
A photograph shared by the building manager helped lead detectives to a vehicle that Collins was suspected of being a passenger in that night, according to court records. Using license plate readers and other surveillance cameras, investigators tracked down a woman who told them she was with Collins the night he was killed.
During a police interview, the witness said she and Graham helped Collins retrieve his things from his old apartment. She said at one point they all went to the park and that Collins left the vehicle to use the portable bathroom.
She heard three gunshots, she said, before Graham allegedly returned holding a gun. She alleged that Graham ordered her to drive away “or she would be next,” according to court papers.
The witness also claimed Graham took photographs of Collins’ body and appeared to send them to someone over text message. Before she dropped Graham off, she allegedly heard him call someone to say: “The job is done.”
Police pulled over and arrested Graham on Aug. 31. He allegedly told police he knew of Collins by the nickname “KC,” and had been with him that night. But Graham denied being involved in Collins’ killing.
Detectives reviewed phone records for Graham as part of their investigation. The records allegedly showed outgoing calls and text messages that fit the timeline provided by their witness.
Court papers did not name a defense attorney for Graham as of Wednesday. He was being held in the Jackson County jail without bond.
