Man killed in police shooting was sought for homicides, child abduction in KC’s Northland
Police shot and killed a man they were calling a “person of interest” in two homicides and the abduction of a 5-year-old child overnight in Kansas City’s Northland, officials said.
Law enforcement officers had been searching for 43-year-old George C. Manning III, who was wanted in the abduction of his daughter, Giuliana Manning, about 11:20 p.m. Thursday from a home just outside of Riverside in unincorporated Platte County.
While at home, Manning allegedly shot two other people, killing a boy and seriously injuring the mother of the boy and Giuliana, according to officials.
Hours later, officers with the Kansas City Police Department and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security saw Manning walking with a gun along Northwest Vivion Road, said Cpl. Justin Howard, a spokesman with the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Troop A, during a morning news conference.
The officers fired their guns at Manning, striking him. Manning was pronounced dead at the scene.
Chuck Nord, who works at an auto shop near the scene, said he was working when he heard gunshots. He ran outside to see what had happened. Nord estimates he heard 50 rounds of gunfire and said he saw law enforcement attempting CPR on a man.
“Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang,” Nord said about the shots. “I ran outside, seeing all these cops surrounded, guns out, you know, all this crazy stuff.”
Manning was also considered a “person of interest” in a shooting that killed another person before the abduction.
Authorities did not release any details about the victims or what led to the shootings.
The series of events began with a fatal shooting about 11:15 p.m. Thursday near the intersection of Northwest Vivion Road and Northwest High Drive in Riverside, according to Capt. Jeffrey Shanks, a spokesman with the Platte County Sheriff’s Office, which is investigating the homicide with the Riverside Police Department.
Manning allegedly shot and killed a woman at the Riverside Car Wash and stole her vehicle, Shanks said.
The killing appears to have been random. Shanks said there was no known relation between Manning and the victim.
“It appeared to be he wanted her vehicle,” Shanks said.
Manning then drove the victim’s vehicle to a home in the 4400 block of Northwest 50th Street just out of Riverside in unincorporated Platte County.
There, Manning allegedly shot two more people, killing a boy and seriously injuring a woman, who is the mother of both the boy and Giuliana, Shanks said.
The age of the victims was not released, but Shanks said the boy was younger than high school age.
Manning then allegedly abducted Giuliana, according to the highway patrol and Shanks.
“We initially thought he was on foot,” Shanks said. “It turns out he was in a vehicle and he fled the area.”
Around 5 a.m., after an Amber Alert had been issued for Giuliana, Manning released her to one of his family members, and the girl was found safe and unharmed, Shanks said.
Manning, however, remained at large and was possibly driving a stolen blue 2013 Hyundai Accent in the Kansas City area, according to the highway patrol.
The Platte County Sheriff’s Office continued to track information on where Manning might be. At one point, they believed he fled over into Kansas and was possibly engaged in a crime there before returning to Missouri, Shanks said.
Law enforcement officials had information that Manning had abandoned a vehicle in Kansas and returned to Missouri in one that had been stolen over there. Shanks said they had a vehicle description and knew it was in the Riverside area.
Around 7:30 a.m., officers spotted Manning walking along Northwest Vivion Road near Northwest Waukomis Drive, said Howard with the highway patrol.
“They observed he was armed with a handgun,” Howard said. “The officers then shot and fired their duty weapons at the suspect and he was pronounced deceased at the scene.”
Howard said he couldn’t say how many officers fired their weapons, but they were with Kansas City police and Homeland Security’s investigation unit.
It was unknown how many shots were fired by officers. That will be part of the investigation into the police shooting, Howard said.
“We do want to stress to the community that things are safe at this time with that suspect that was wanted in relation to the Amber Alert and the homicides is deceased,” Howard said. “So there is no public safety threat in regards to that.”
People were still recommended to stay out of the area as the investigation was still ongoing.
Manning was being considered the “person of interest” in both the homicides and the child abduction should be considered armed and dangerous, said Shanks, adding that Manning was believed to be involved in multiple shootings in the area.
Although police do not believe Manning knew his victim at the car wash, Shanks said there was a relationship between Manning and the victims at the home, but the full details were not known. The girl he abducted was his daughter. Investigators were not sure about the relationship with the boy he was killed.
“With the mother having to go undergo surgery at the hospital, we’re making sure the proper notification is made before we give out too much information regarding the victims,” Shanks said.
“It’s been a very long night,” Shanks said.
This story was originally published February 28, 2025 at 10:58 AM.
