Shocking news coming out of the mass shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs‘ Super Bowl parade on Wednesday, starting with the awful detail… Two of the three suspects are juveniles.
According to Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves (pictured above, center), investigators are learning what caused the horrific incident in which nearly two dozen people suffered gunshot wounds, with one person dying. Per Graves, this wasn’t intended as a mass shooting — the parade itself was not the target. Instead, an altercation between two groups of people apparently led to a hail of bullets being fired by multiple shooters, with the crowd tragically being in the way.
Related: Travis Kelce Speaks Out Following Tragic Shooting At Super Bowl Victory Parade
During a press conference on Thursday morning, Graves noted the incident was not terrorism, but a personal conflict:
“This appeared to be a dispute between several people that ended in gunfire.”
She did not publicly identify any of the three people being held. However, she did confirm that two are under 18 years old. She also said more arrests are possible. To that end, the KCPD is still searching for more information about the incident, including the possibility that there could have been even more shooters who fired weapons.
In a statement released late Wednesday, the KCPD begged the public for help:
“We need to hear from anyone in the vicinity of the parade shooting today that directly witnessed the shooting incident, has any video of the shooting incident or who was a victim of the shooting who has not yet reported being shot.”
Chief Graves also confirmed the number of casualties — 21 with gunshot wounds, and one killed. Horrifically, she revealed half of the wounded victims were under the age of 16, with an 8-year-old being the youngest. OMG…
As for the deceased victim, while the KCPD did not confirm that person’s identity, their employer did. Lisa Lopez-Galvan (above, top left) was identified by radio station KKFI 90.1 FM as the person killed in the tragedy. Lopez-Galvan was a longtime radio and wedding DJ in the city and well-known as the host of that station’s Taste of Tejano show. In a statement on her death late Wednesday, KKFI noted:
“It is with sincere sadness and an extremely heavy and broken heart that we let our community know that KKFI DJ Lisa Lopez, host of Taste of Tejano lost her life today in the shooting at the KC Chiefs’ rally. Our hearts and prayers are with her family. We encourage anyone who feels they saw something to reach out to law enforcement at 816-234-5111. This senseless act has taken a beautiful person from her family and this KC Community.”
Per the Kansas City Star, the mother of two died during surgery after being severely wounded with a bullet in the abdomen and rushed to a hospital. So, so sad.
You can watch more regarding the KCPD’s investigation via their Thursday morning press briefing (below):
Our hearts go out to Lopez-Galvan’s family, friends, and loved ones — and all those wounded who must now try to recover from this life-altering event.
To learn more about the impact of gun violence, visit https://www.apha.org/topics-and-issues/gun-violence.