Woman suspected in KCUR reporter’s killing gets 15 years in federal drug case
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- Federal judge sentenced Idella Gardner to 15 years in a federal drug case.
- Prosecutors presented evidence linking Gardner to Aviva Okeson-Haberman’s killing.
- Judge found Gardner responsible by a preponderance of the evidence.
A Kansas City woman, long suspected but never charged in the fatal shooting of KCUR reporter Aviva Okeson-Haberman, was sentenced in a separate federal drug trafficking case.
U.S. District Judge David Kays sentenced Idella “Lupi” Gardner, 37, to 15 years in federal prison on Monday, according to a news release from the U.S. District Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri.
Federal prosecutors presented evidence of Gardner’s involvement in Okeson-Haberman’s killing to urge Kays to issue a longer sentence. Gardner, however, has denied being involved in the fatal shooting.
Kays found, by a preponderance of the evidence, that Gardner was responsible for the fatal shooting, allowing him to opt for a substantial variance from the federal sentencing guidelines, according to the news release.
Gardner pleaded guilty in October 2024 to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and four counts of using a cellphone to facilitate drug trafficking crimes. Her plea came in a large federal drug-conspiracy case that involved more than 25 people.
The charges resulted from a nearly year-long investigation involving multiple law enforcement agencies.
In her plea, Gardner admitted that between January 2019 and March 2022, she conspired with members of a street gang and co-conspirators to distribute cocaine. The investigation allegedly established that Gardner took part in coordinating drug transactions at least 40 times, according to court documents.
When she was arrested on March 9, 2022, she was found in possession of cocaine, cellphones, firearm magazines, and ammunition.
At the sentencing, prosecutors also presented evidence regarding Gardner’s involvement in the fatal shooting of Okeson-Haberman, according to the news release.
A co-worker had gone to Okeson-Haberman’s apartment in the 2900 block of Lockridge Avenue in Kansas City after she had missed work on April 23, 2021. The co-worker and neighbors saw a bullet hole in a window of her apartment.
When one of them looked in, they saw Okeson-Haberman unresponsive in her bed. She was taken to a hospital and died two days later.
Her death was ruled a homicide after Kansas City police determined the fatal shot had come from the parking lot outside the apartment.
Prosecutors contended in their sentencing memorandum that Gardner quickly emerged as a suspect after a neighbor came forward to detectives to say they believed they were the intended target.
Other evidence, including surveillance video and location data from her cellphone, placed Gardner in the vicinity of Okeson-Haberman’s apartment at the time of the shooting, according to court documents.
When detectives interviewed Gardner on June 22, 2021, she allegedly denied being in the area. She later admitted she had driven through the complex’s parking lot after she got off work that night. Gardner said she was reluctant to place herself there because she had been in the area selling drugs, according to court documents.
