Baby killed, two women injured in targeted south Wichita apartment shooting, police say

No one is in custody in a south Wichita shooting where a suspect fired multiple rounds into an apartment, killing a 1-year-old boy and critically injuring two 24-year-old women, Wichita police said Tuesday afternoon.

“At this time, based on the evidence known, we do believe this was a targeted incident,” police spokesperson Kris Gupilan said in a news release. When asked, he said the target and reason for the shooting are still under investigation.

Police have historically released the names of victims killed, but said “out of an abundance of caution and out of respect for the grieving family” they would not at this time.

The apartment was also occupied by a 24-year-old man, a 5-year-old girl, and a 10-month-old girl, but none of them were hit.

At 7:19 p.m., police were called to a shooting at Sugar Creek Apartments, 2550 South Oliver, which is near the Kansas Turnpike.

When police arrived, they found the baby boy unresponsive after being shot in the head, according to Sedgwick County Emergency Communications 911 scanner traffic. One woman had been shot in the arm and another in the “back room who has been shot in the back.”

EMS took all three to the hospital. The women’s injuries were critical but non-life-threatening, Gupilan said.

Gupilan would not say the relationship between the victims. Police are still investigating who all lives at the apartment, he said.

Police were looking for a black car, driven by two or three males, headed south on Oliver just after the shooting, according to 911 scanner traffic.

“I am deeply saddened and outraged by the violent and heinous crime that has occurred in our community,” Chief Joe Sullivan said in the news release. “The killing of a 1-year-old child is an unspeakable tragedy that has left us all shaken.”

Police are asking anyone with information about the shooting to call detectives at 316-268-4407, the See Something Say Something hotline at 316-519-2282 or Crime Stoppers at 316-267-2111. Callers can remain anonymous with Crime Stoppers.

This is the city’s ninth homicide so far this year, according to reports from police. There were six at this time last year; seven in 2022; 11 in 2021 and nine in 2020, which ended up being the city’s record year for homicides.

One thing that stands out so far in 2024 is the age of the victims: the average age of nearly 23 is far less the same time frames for those years except for 2020, which was just slightly higher than this year.

This is the youngest victim so far this year; the oldest is 43. Of the nine victims so far this year, four are teens and one was 20.

This story was originally published February 20, 2024 at 1:02 PM.