Three men sought in fatal shootings at house near Ninth, Grove

Police are looking for three men linked to the killing of two people at a house near Ninth and Grove on Tuesday afternoon.

A 55-year-old woman who lived at the house and a 24-year-old man who was visiting were gunned down in the front yard at 2519 E. Mossman, Wichita police Lt. Todd Ojile said. Their names have not yet been released.

“During the afternoon, there had been a confrontation a short time before the shooting between two males at the house and another male who had come over to the house and dropped off a female,” Ojile said.

The man who dropped off the woman left, then returned about a half hour later with two other men in the car, he said. A fight broke out almost immediately, and shots were fired “toward the residence from the street,” Ojile said.

The 55-year-old woman, who was standing near her front porch and was not involved in the clash, was shot and retreated into her house, where she died. The 24-year-old man was struck by gunfire and was taken to Wesley Medical Center.

He underwent surgery but later died, Ojile said. A police document stated he died at 8:46 p.m.

“We believe most of it is probably stemming from some type of gang feud” or a dispute involving one of the three teenage girls who live at the house, Ojile said.

The names of the victims are being withheld pending the notification of relatives.

“We are looking for three specific individuals at this point,” Ojile said.

Investigators think there was more than one shooter.

Ojile said police are concerned about the prospect of gang members retaliating for the shooting.

“You’ve always got to worry about it,” he said. “There is a lot of false information that comes out on these, especially when you have gangs involved.”

The deaths raise Wichita’s homicide total for 2015 to 30.

This story was originally published December 2, 2015 at 12:34 PM with the headline "Three men sought in fatal shootings at house near Ninth, Grove."