Two juveniles have been charged in connection with a shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade that left one person dead and 22 others injured, officials said Friday.
The juveniles, who were taken into custody after the parade, were charged Thursday and are being held at a juvenile detention center on gun-related and resisting-arrest charges, the Jackson County Family Court Division of the 16th Judicial Circuit Court of Missouri said in a statement.
Additional charges are expected as the police investigation continues, officials said.
“I am grateful for the charges against the two juveniles who hurt innocent people, simultaneously scarring an entire community,” Kansas City police Chief Stacey Graves said in a statement posted on social media.
She added that investigators “will not relent until everyone who may have played a part in these crimes is apprehended so that they may be punished to the fullest extent of the law.”
The shooting happened Wednesday afternoon in downtown Kansas City, next to Union Station, where the parade had ended and the rally was held. Authorities said they believe a dispute among several people ended in gunfire and said there was no evidence of violent extremism or terrorism.
Popular radio DJ Lisa Lopez-Galvan was killed. Her family said her death was a “big loss.”
Her brother Beto Lopez said Lopez-Galvan “was a lot more than just a number.”
“She was a very wholesome, very caring, very loving individual,” he said on NBC’s “TODAY” show.
Police said that the other 22 victims ranged in age from 8 to 47 and that at least half were under the age of 16. Children’s Mercy Hospital has said the youngest patient it received was 6.
Three people were initially taken into custody after the shooting. Police said Thursday that one of them was released after it was determined that they were not involved.
Several firearms had been recovered, the police chief said.
Many witnesses described the scene as chaotic as people fled in different directions.
Nick Buddy, 40, of Kansas City, said he saw a number of injured people as he and his family tried to get to safety.
Jacob Gooch, 37, of Leavenworth, Kansas, said he heard a woman telling someone, “Not now. This isn’t the place,” moments before the shooting. Gooch, who was about 15 feet away, was shot in the ankle and suffered a couple broken bones.
His 13-year-old son was shot in the foot and his partner, Emily Tavis, was shot in the calf.
Other witnesses, including Paul Contreras, tackled potential suspects, video posted on social media showed. In an interview with NBC’s “TODAY” show, he said he saw someone running in the opposite direction and “took him down.”