INDEPENDENCE, Mo. — Prosecutors have charged an 18-year-old man for the deadly shooting outside the Independence Center mall.
Independence police said Tyler Gates is charged with second-degree murder and armed criminal action. He was taken into custody in Kansas City, Missouri, Wednesday afternoon.
Tyler Gates (pictured above) is accused of killing 17-year-old Matthew Haylock.
Independence police were called to the mall's parking lot around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday.
When officers arrived, they found a man dead in the parking lot. He was later identified as Matthew J. Haylock, 17.
“When you realize it’s someone you grew up with it hits close to home, it hurts,” Sam Baker, one of the Haylock’s friend told 41 Action News Wednesday.
Baker is one of many heartbroken over the sudden senseless death of their childhood friend.
“I was laying down in bed and my brother walks in, ‘did you hear what happened to Matt?’ I was like, ‘no way’ just started crying right there,” Tyler Weeks, another friend said.
According to the charging documents, a witness told police he saw Gates push Haylock out of his car and then drive off.
Independence police found that car shortly after Gates abandoned it three miles away from the mall on S. Randall Drive. Two handguns were discovered inside the vehicle.
Police said Gates's mother told them her son admitted to shooting the victim.
Gates's mother also told police that Gates admitted to shooting the victim and said an argument started regarding Gates's house allegedly being shot at.
The witness also told police that the gun used in the shooting belonged to him, according to the probable cause statement. He initially told investigators the gun belonged to the victim but changed his story in a second interview. He allegedly said he gave it to Gates for protection after his house was shot at.
Haylock’s friends told 41 Action News the young man attended Van Horn High School until his sophomore year during which he participated in cross country, basketball and track and field.
“When we went places for cross country meets he was always hyping us up, he was just being a good person, good friend,” Baker said.
Haylock leaves behind a son less than a year old and was expecting a daughter in the new year.
Baker last saw Haylock a few weeks ago.
“He was happy, he was excited for his second kid to come along he seemed like he was in a good spot right now. He didn’t seem upset; he seemed like everything was going his way,” Baker said.
“Whatever picture they paint of him being a bad kid that’s not who he really was, he was a good kid, he did anything like I said earlier he would do the right thing and he would protect those he cared about.”
Haylock's friends are planning a candlelight vigil Saturday at 5 p.m. at Truman and Noland Roads.
