KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Several members of the Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department sued an Independence gun shop after they were injured in a shooting last year.
The lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday in Jackson County Circuit Court, alleges that the Armory KC LLC was negligent when it sold a gun to a convicted felon in violation of federal law.
Marlin Mack, who became the prime suspect in the July 2018 murder of University of Missouri-Kansas City student Sharath Koppu at J’s Fish and Chicken Market in the 5400 block of Prospect Avenue.
Eight days after Koppu was shot to death, Mack walked into the Armory KC on U.S. 40 looking to buy a weapon.
Mack, a convicted felon known to Tulsa police for violent robberies, filled out an ATF application.
According to the officers' attorney, Christopher Accurso, Mack answered “yes” to a question on the application about his criminal history that should have prevented him from obtaining a firearm.
Instead, the store sold Mack a semi-automatic AK-style pistol, which was used one day later to shoot three KCPD officers.
"They had all the information in front that they needed to know that this individual was absolutely prohibited from purchasing a firearm," Accurso told 41 Action News.
When KCPD zeroed in on Mack at the SkyVu Motel in the 8300 block of U.S. 40 on July 15, he wounded two officers before fleeing the scene. He later wounded a third officer during a standoff.
Mack later was killed by police.
Those three injured officers and a fourth officer who suffered emotional distress along with their wives are now suing the Armory KC.
"They all need to be attentive with every single customer that comes into their store and they need to look at their own paperwork," Accurso said. "And when the information is in front of you that you can't sell somebody a firearm, you need to abide by that. And if you're going to choose not to follow those rules, you need to be held accountable."
The ATF is still investigating the store’s actions, a spokesperson said Thursday.
A law enforcement source told 41 Action News that the store had its national firearms license revoked in June. The owners can appeal the decision but, for the time being, can’t sell any firearms.
A hearing on the KCPD officers' lawsuit is scheduled for Jan. 6, 2020.
