What we know — and don’t know — about deaths of three friends outside Kansas City home

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In the weeks since three men were found dead outside a home in Kansas City’s Northland, people across the country have been asking questions and posting their own theories online as investigators have remained tight-lipped.

Loved ones say they still don’t know what happened to Clayton McGeeney, Ricky Johnson and David Harrington after they went to their friend Jordan Willis’ home in the 5200 block of Northwest 83rd Terrace to watch the Chiefs play the Los Angeles Chargers.

Here’s what we know — and what we don’t — on some of the most commonly asked questions about the case.

How did the men die?

On Tuesday Jan. 9, police received a call from McGeeney’s fiancee. She told them that, after not hearing from McGeeney, she went to the Northland home, banged on the door and broke into the basement when no one answered.

In the back porch area, she told police she found a dead body. When officers arrived, they found two other men dead in the backyard.

Willis’ lawyer, John Picerno, said his client told police everything he knew, allowed them into his home and willingly consented to a search of his home.

No criminal charges have been filed, and the case is currently being treated as a death investigation, not a homicide investigation.

Officials are awaiting the results of autopsies and toxicology reports from the medical examiner to determine the men’s causes of death in order to decide how to proceed with the investigation. It’s not yet known if charges will be filed.

Who were the victims?

Loved ones said McGeeney, Johnson and Harrington had been good friends since they were kids and graduated from Park Hill High School.

Alan McGeeney, Clayton McGeeney’s cousin, said his cousin told him while they were working a flooring job together that he was planning to watch the Chiefs game with friends on Jan. 7.

His cousin was an adventure seeking person who traveled the country on his Harley, Alan McGeeney said. Clayton McGeeney had previously faced issues with traffic tickets and child support payments, but he worked on himself the last decade and no longer struggled with lingering court dates or money owed.

Johnson was a father of three daughters, who also helped the McGeeneys with flooring jobs. That Sunday night, Clayton McGeeney told his cousin that he and Johnson would take over a job the following day so Alan McGeeney could rest his back.

Harrington’s mom, Jennifer Marquez, said her son was a caring friend who would go out of his way to help others when they faced a hard time. The three men were strong pillars in their community, and hundreds came out to support their families at celebrations of life, she said.

Loved ones created GoFundMes to raise money for the families of McGeeney, Johnson and Harrington to help pay for their memorial services and other expenses.

Why didn’t the home’s resident notice the bodies?

Last weekend, Picerno released a statement on behalf of Willis, saying his client knew nothing about the men’s deaths. In the days since the statement was released, however, the accounts of exactly what happened that night have varied.

Picerno said Willis went to sleep on his couch as McGeeney, Johnson and Harrington exited the home, but didn’t know they had been in his backyard and hadn’t heard their loved ones knocking on his door or breaking into the home.

Originally, Picerno said that Willis hadn’t seen the men exit his home before he went to sleep, but he later told FOX4 that Willis walked the men to the door before he fell asleep.

Picerno also told FOX4 that a fifth friend was at the home when Willis went to sleep, but told The Star the friend had left before everyone else.

Eventually, Picerno said Willis went upstairs to his bed and fell asleep. Because he sleeps with headphones and a loud fan, Picerno said Willis didn’t hear loved ones knocking at his door.

He claimed Willis didn’t receive any text messages or calls from loved ones of the men, and hadn’t gone to the backyard since he worked from home. Picerno told KCTV5 that Willis had no reason to go to the backyard until police came to his home around 10 p.m. Tuesday.

He emphasized that police said foul play didn’t seem like a factor in their initial investigation, and said Willis would have helped his friends had he known they were in danger.

But it’s still not known exactly what happened that night, or why Willis didn’t notice the bodies or the men’s cars outside his home in the days after their deaths.

Since the incident, Picerno confirmed that Willis has moved out of the Northland home and deactived his social media accounts because of the attention the case has received.