KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department continues to investigate a shooting near Union Station during the Chiefs Super Bowl parade that was separate from the Chiefs rally mass shooting that killed one woman and injured more than two dozen others.
Jenipher Cabrera, 20, was with her family and walking toward Union Station on Feb. 14 to celebrate the Chiefs latest Super Bowl win. But before she could get to her destination, she and a juvenile were shot near E. 27th Terrace and McGee Trafficway, located a few blocks east of Liberty Memorial’s south lawn.
Cabrera recalls seeing a group of teenagers walking in front of her and her family before the shooting.
“We were just minding our business and that's when we saw the kids run away and we heard the shots," said Cabrera.
Cabrera was hit by the gunfire and suffered a non-life-threatening injury to the leg. Bystanders performed first aid before she was rushed to University Health.
“It’s an event where we celebrate the Chiefs because they won, and for that to happen, it’s just upsetting and disappointing because it has me fearing for my life now because it can happen anywhere," said Cabrera. "It hit me on my thigh, so near my knee. Thankfully, it didn't go through a bone or a nerve, it just went through my muscle."
KCPD says the shooting happened half an hour before the mass shooting outside Union Station. At this time, police say they don't believe the shootings are related, and detectives are still actively interviewing witnesses and reviewing surveillance footage in order to identify anyone involved and what led up to the incident.
"It just lets you know that anyone, nowadays, can have a gun, and that's kind of scary because you don't know whose hands that gun can go to," said Cabrera. "I didn't ask to be shot and I wasn't hoping for this (to) happen, and the fact that it happened, it leaves me fearful of where I'm going now and going to big events now."
Cabrera was under hospital care for nearly a week until she was discharged on Tuesday. According to Cabrera, she will undergo physical therapy, and her family has set up a GoFundMeto offset costs.
If anyone has any information, they are encouraged to contact KCPD Assault Squad at 816-234-5227 or through the TIPS Hotline at (816) 474-TIPS (8477).
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