Wichita police look for clues after two men shot to death in separate homicides
Wichita police are searching for clues to help solve two weekend homicides. Anyone with tips is encouraged to report them.
Capt. Jason Stephens, during a Monday morning news briefing, said the man whose body was found in Planeview Park on Sunday afternoon died from multiple gunshot wounds. Investigators think Manuel Vargas-Avila, 42, was likely slain during a fight with several people in the park sometime late Saturday evening, Stephens said. He was discovered dead on a park bench around 1 p.m. Sunday in the 2800 block of South Fees, near 31st Street South and Oliver.
Police received a call about the second killing around 5:15 a.m. Monday. Stephens said a man, who authorities are still working to positively identify, was shot to death by an unknown gunman in a driveway in the 6900 block of East Ayesbury Circle, near 21st and Woodlawn. Stephens said it appears the fatal shots were fired during a fight over personal property.
“We believe that the altercation in its entirety occurred outdoors,” Stephen said, adding that the investigation “is still very new and ongoing.” There may have been a U-Haul truck that left the scene around the same time the shooting happened, he said. A second person may have been shot but that has not been confirmed, Stephens said.
Neither of the homicides are considered random killings, Wichita police spokesman Officer Charley Davidson said.
Anyone with tips can call detectives at 316-268-4407, the Crime Stoppers hotline at 316-267-2111 or the See Something, Say Something hotline at 316-519-2282. Hotline tipsters can remain anonymous. Crime Stoppers tipsters may be eligible for a cash reward if their information leads to an arrest.
The deaths are the city’s 25th and 26th homicides that have occurred so far this year, Davidson said.
This story was originally published June 29, 2020 at 11:02 AM.
