KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker announced new charges in Sunday morning's mass shooting that killed three people and left six others injured near East 57th Street and Prospect Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri.
Keivon M. Greene, 26, was charged with three counts of second-degree murder and three counts of armed criminal action for the killings of Camden M. Brown, 29; Jasity J. Strong, 28; and Nikko A. Manning, 22.
Greene — who also was shot and remains hospitalized, but is not counted among the six surviving shooting victims — was charged Monday with first-degree assault and armed criminal action on Monday.
“This defendant is being charged with all of the events of that evening, whether he fired the fatal shot or not,” Baker said. “He is the individual that set off this chain event that led to shooting by others. Under Missouri law, he is to be held accountable for all of the events that evening.”
Greene will be held on no bond and will remain in the custody of the Jackson County Detention Center after his release from the hospital.
Two days before the shooting, Greene posted bond in a separate incident during which he was charged with resisting arrest by fleeing Independence police.
He was arrested in that case June 13 and posted a $1,000 bond on June 23, which allowed him to be freed awaiting a July 10 court appearance.
"It might be tempting to attack the judge in some way for that bond, perhaps me, but it is my duty to defend that judge. It is my duty to defend the rule of law," Baker said. "This judge followed the rule of law."
There are at least two other criminal cases pending against Greene, according to a review of court records.
Greene was arrested Jan. 23, 2019, and charged with unlawful use of a weapon and three counts of possession of a controlled substance. His next scheduled hearing is July 24.
Greene was charged with possession of a controlled substance again on May 10, 2022. He is due in court July 11 in that case.
KCPD officeres responded around 4:40 a.m. on Sunday, June 25, to a chaotic scene along East 57th Street between Prospect and Wabash avenues.
Police found one victim lying dead in the road on 57th Street, another in a parking lot at 5700 Prospect Avenue and a third victim in a parking lot at 5644 Prospect Avenue.
Shell casings were located in both parking lots and in the street.
Police reviewed surveillance video of the incident, which appeared to show Greene interact with a group of people outside an automotive repair shop that is known for hosting after-hours parties.
Greene can be seen chatting with two women in the road on 57th Street. He then walks away and talks with another man, according to a KCPD probable cause statement.
A third man approached the two women before another man joins the conversation.
A little more than a minute after walking away from the women, Greene walks back to the group and opens fire then turns and fires into a crowd in the parking lot of 5700 Prospect Ave.
It's unclear from the court documents if anyone else fired a gun during the exchange.
The six people transported to the hospital in the shooting were struck by gunfire and shrapnel from gunfire.
Greene was arrested within 12 hours, according to Sgt. Tim Fitzgerald with the KCPD Homicide Unit.
Fitzgerald thanked detectives who worked on the case and witnesses on the scene for helping identify suspects in the case.
“We would not be here today if it were not for them,” he said Tuesday during a press conference.
Baker said the mass shooting was seemingly sparked by a small dispute.
"Maybe it was an issue, perhaps over a girlfriend,” Baker said. “That’s what we understand happened, but that’s not a suitable answer. That is not a suitable motive for such an event like this.”
The auto mechanic shop at the scene of the shooting was not legally licensed to operate as a club, KCPD Chief of Police Stacey Graves said Tuesday.
Graves said it will take a community-wide effort to make Kansas City a safer place.
"The mother I met and talked to, I saw myself in her," Graves said. "She's a wife, she's a mother, she wanted to help her adult child. This touches each and every one of us, and it's going to take every one of us to work together."
KCPD is continuing to investigate the shooting and additional charges are possible in "the months ahead."
—
For jurisdictions that utilize the Greater Kansas City Crime Stoppers Tips Hotline, anonymous tips can be made by calling 816-474-TIPS (8477), submitting the tip online or through the free mobile app at P3Tips.com.
Annual homicide details and data for the Kansas City area are available through the KSHB 41 News Homicide Tracker, which was launched in 2015. Read the KSHB 41 News Mug Shot Policy.
