One killed, 10 hurt in Wichita shootings this week. ‘This has to stop,’ chief says
A club-goer gunned down in a parking lot; a man shot while out for a jog; two teen girls grazed by gunfire while celebrating at a post-prom party; a retaliatory shooting that injured three; and a domestic violence attack that left a woman in extremely critical condition.
Those cases are among seven separate shootings that unfolded across Wichita over the past week, leaving one person dead, 10 people injured and, as Police Chief Joe Sullivan said, lives “forever changed.”
“Violence like this impacts the entire community, and we will continue, therefore, to pursue every lead,” Sullivan said.
The recent spike in gun violence prompted a press conference Friday in which Sullivan shared additional details about the shootings. He also put out a call to Wichitans to come forward with information and to keep a closer eye on loved ones — who they’re with and what they may be up to — as investigators work to identify and arrest people suspected in the recent violence. As of 5 p.m. Friday, four people have been arrested in connection with the weekend shootings, and one person is in police custody for a shooting that happened Friday morning.
The fatal club shooting
1:57 a.m. April 11 in the 6300 block of W. Kellogg
The string of shootings began early Saturday.
In the parking lot of a club on West Kellogg, police found evidence of a disturbance, but no injured victims. Not long after, two men walked into a Wichita hospital seeking treatment for gunshot wounds — 37-year-old William Johnson and a seriously injured 54-year-old man, Sullivan said. Johnson was admitted in critical condition, and was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
Sullivan said the fatal altercation began with a disturbance inside the club before moving to the parking lot. Once there, multiple people began shooting.
Since the shooting, Wichita police have arrested one man who allegedly fired a gun, but did not strike Johnson or the 54-year-old, on suspicion of criminal discharge of a firearm. The person suspected of killing Johnson, meanwhile, has not been found. Sullivan said detectives with the department are actively following strong leads.
The shooting and battery that injured four
2:44 a.m. April 11 in the 500 block of N. Nims
Three people have been arrested and charged in connection with the shooting and battery that hurt four during Saturday’s second shooting call, Sullivan said.
It happened at an apartment complex less than an hour after the West Kellogg shooting. A 31-year-old woman had been shot in her upper torso, while three others were injured after being struck with a firearm.
Brothers Brain Gurrola, 31, and Scott Gurrola, 31, as well as 30 -year-old Selena Perez have since been arrested and charged in connection with the crimes.
Brian Gurrola was charged with attempted first-degree murder, four counts of aggravated battery and a single count each of battery, aggravated assault and criminal possession of a weapon by a felon. Scott Gurrola and Perez were also charged with attempted murder; Scott also faces four counts of aggravated battery, two charges for violating his parole, and one count of criminal possession of a weapon. In addition to attempted murder, Perez was charged with two counts of aggravated battery and one count of battery.
Sullivan said multiple guns were recovered and taken into the police’s possession.
Brian, Scott and Perez made their first appearance in court Friday and are scheduled to return again near the end of the month.
The retaliatory shooting
3:25 p.m. April 11 in the 2500 block of E. 25th St. North
The violence continued later that afternoon with what police said was a retaliatory shooting.
Sullivan said one person was shot outside a home, while two others inside were struck and injured by gunfire; the victims ranged in age from 23 to 66.
Investigators were able to quickly identify a suspect vehicle using Flock camera technology, Sullivan said, and have since determined that the shooting was in retaliation for the homicide that happened that morning in the 6300 block of W. Kellogg.
The shooting involving a jogger
3:26 p.m. April 11 at 15th and Hydraulic
Only a minute later, a 39-year-old jogger suffering from a gunshot wound to his lower body walked into a Wichita hospital for treatment. There were no witnesses to the shooting, Sullivan said, and as of 5 p.m. Friday, no arrests have been made.
“We’re going strictly by what the victim has told us,” Sullivan said at Friday’s press conference. “And he claimed that that was an encounter with another person on foot.”
The post-prom party shooting
3 a.m. April 12 in the 3100 block of N. Oliver
Officers were called to the block for a shooting tied to a post-prom party.
Two teenage girls were grazed by gunfire and suffered minor injuries, Sullivan said. A 16-year-old girl was later arrested in Oklahoma in connection with the shooting. Police said multiple people may have been involved, but confirmed at least one shooter — the teen now in custody.
“If you think about when you were in high school, I don’t think that (getting shot) was something you were worried about when you left your prom,” Sullivan said. “And it’s sad that we’ve gotten to that point where young people cannot enjoy such a significant milestone in their lives, and to think they have to worry about gun violence.”
The woman shot in the head
2:42 a.m. April 14 in the 2300 block of N. Woodlawn
Additional information regarding a woman who was shot in the head near an apartment complex was scarce as investigators continue to examined the circumstances leading up to the Tuesday morning shooting.
Sullivan said the 22-year-old shooting victim is expected to survive.
The suspected domestic violence-related shooting
8:01 a.m. April 17 in the 7200 block of E. 37th St. North
Police have taken a man into custody in connection with the most recent shooting Friday.
Sullivan said a domestic dispute between a man and a woman escalated into gunfire, leaving the woman in extremely critical condition. The man called 911 and was taken into police custody by responding officers, according to initial reporting. The man and woman knew each other, a WPD public information officer at the scene of the shooting said, and there is no ongoing threat to the community.
What do the crime trends say?
While last Saturday’s homicide brought Wichita’s total to eight so far this year, Sullivan said the broader data offers some context, even if little comfort.
The recent cases involved multiple victims in several incidents, inflating the total number of people shot compared to the number of shootings themselves. He noted that, assuming the current spike subsides, Wichita was in a worse position at this point last year.
“If you look at it from incidents, none of this is good news,” Sullivan said. “We’re still significantly below last year in gunshot victims, but I’ll say it again, we’ve had way too many, and this has to stop.”
Adding to investigators’ frustration, Sullivan said, is that none of the recent shootings occurred in areas identified in the department’s risk-based policing model, known as Risk Terrain Management, or RTM.
Police are continuing to devote significant resources to the investigations, Sullivan said, pulling in additional officers, analysts and federal partners like the United States Marshals Service to track leads, analyze ballistic evidence and identify suspects.
“This is serious. We have expelled a lot of resources, a lot of manpower, a lot of technology, and this is an all hands on deck operation throughout the weekend,” Sullivan said. “And it’ll continue to be.”
Anyone with information relating to any of the recent shootings is encouraged to contact investigators with the Wichita Police Department at 316-268-4407 or leave tips anonymously via CrimeStoppers at 316-267-2111.
