Man pointed gun at cars in east Wichita before being shot, killed by police
A man was shot and killed by police Saturday night after a standoff that prompted a large law enforcement response and shelter-in-place order in east Wichita.
Wichita Police Department information officer Andrew Ford said that the man was suffering from a mental crisis, and was reportedly involved in a disturbance earlier in the day at a business before he began pointing a gun at passing cars and shot at responding police officers.
Ford said law enforcement was initially notified around 3:19 p.m. Saturday that a man was causing a disturbance at the Top Golf near Kansas 96 and Greenwich. When officers arrived the man was no longer there, but not long after several reports were made to 911 that a man near K-96 and Greenwich was loading and pointing a gun at passing vehicles. Ford said it was the same man involved in the disturbance reported at Top Golf.
The man went into at least two other businesses, including a Bass Pros Shops where he asked about magazines and ammunition for his handgun; Ford said no ammunition was sold to him. He then walked toward 21st and Webb, continuing to point his gun at passing cars, Ford said.
It was near the intersection where police spoke with the man via a loudspeaker, asking him to stop.
He then took off running toward a tree line near Wilson Estates and Red Brush, Ford said. Police pursued the man, and an officer made several unsuccessful attempts to taser him.
Once at the tree line, Ford said the man fired one shot at officers.
“Thankfully, our officers were not injured during that exchange,” Ford said during a media briefing Saturday night. “Immediately, officers backed up, called for assistance, and set up a perimeter in the area.”
That included a multi-agency response, with officers from SWAT, crisis negotiation, Kechi, Bel Aire, the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office, Kansas Highway Patrol and Kansas Bureau of Investigation responding. Two helicopters were also deployed, and nearby residents of Wilson Estates were ordered to shelter in place.
Police made several attempts to communicate with the man, but the man never responded, Ford said.
“We even offered him food to see if that would help get him to speak with us, get him to surrender to us peacefully,” Ford said.
Through conversations with their mental health service provider, Ford said law enforcement determined that the man had been “suffering a mental crisis” since the disturbance at Top Golf was reported.
Around 7:25 p.m. police deployed a rook, an armored vehicle, and were able to get within feet of the man, who was still in the tree line, a KBI news release said. From a platform on the rook, officers were able to talk to the man, “trying to get him to drop his gun,” Ford said, and set up communication with law enforcement via a device.
Police had thrown a communications device toward the man, Ford said, when he pointed his gun at his own head.
Ford said police told him to drop the weapon, and the man turned his gun toward the rook.
“That male pointed his weapon at the rook and ... a shot was fired from our officer at that time,” Ford said. “The male then fired back, which then (we) responded where we had another exchange of gunfire.”
The man was struck by the officer’s gunfire; according to the KBI, it was the same officer who shot at the man initially.
Ford said the man was taken to a hospital and was pronounced dead soon upon arrival.
“We attempted to communicate and de-escalate, reaching out to people, family members who may have known knew this male, but we could not get contact with him for several hours,” Ford said. “It’s a tragedy that occurred, but we tried everything we could to try and get this male to come out peacefully.”
Wichita Police Chief Joe Sullivan said that it wasn’t the outcome they had hoped for, but “some things are just beyond everyone’s control.”
At around 9:25 p.m., police said the shelter-in-place order for the area was no longer active. Sullivan thanked residents, several of whom were unable to get to their homes during the standoff, for their patience.
“This was a very volatile situation. It might have been inconvenient, but we had to make sure that we kept the community safe,” Sullivan said.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation will spearhead the investigation into the officer-involved shooting, and further updates will come from the state agency. In a press release, the agency said they are still working to contact the man’s family to notify them of his death.
This story was originally published May 24, 2026 at 11:32 AM.
