KANSAS CITY, Mo. — After a search that lasted multiple hours on Tuesday, Kansas City police were able to arrest two suspects in connection to a shooting near Shake Shack in the Plaza.
Moments after shots were fired around noon, groups of officers were seen arriving with armor, guns, and canine units as the search for suspects led to street closures and lockdowns of office buildings nearby.
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In an interview with 41 Action News on Tuesday afternoon, former KCPD officer John Hamilton said conducting a search effort in the Plaza presents all sorts of challenges.
“The first issue is everywhere around that particular area there are parking lots of some kind,” said Hamilton, who served in the KCPD for over 20 years as a major. “In a parking lot, people can hide between cars. They’ll crawl underneath cars.”
In pictures and videos sent to 41 Action News from an employee inside a building on lockdown, officers could be seen searching a nearby parking garage with guns drawn.
Hamilton said officers also likely focused on stairwells, office buildings, and streets around the Plaza to try and find the suspects.
During searches like the one on Tuesday, the former KCPD officer said 9-1-1 call takers play a crucial role.
“The call taker has to sort through an awful lot of information. The more information that he or she can get, the better off the officers are,” he said. “The information may be helpful. It may not be. The call taker has to sort through all of that and relay all the information out.”
Two suspects were eventually captured, with one of them surrendering inside of a parking garage.
As of Tuesday night, names and information of the suspects had not been released.
