Kansas City police locate Uber driver thought to have evidence in Friday homicide

Kansas City police on Friday said they have located an Uber driver who had been at the scene of a homicide earlier in the afternoon and had been sought on the belief they had seen the shooting or had evidence in their vehicle.

The homicide was reported at 1 p.m. as a shooting in the 2100 block of East 24th Terrace, said Sgt. Jake Becchina, a spokesman for the Kansas City Police Department.

A man who had been shot was located in the street. He was unresponsive and declared dead at the scene. A person of interest was taken into custody.

Becchina said investigators believe a confrontation between the victim and the person of interest led to the shooting.

At one point, the person of interest had ordered an Uber. The driver arrived in a blue Jeep Patriot but left.

“We want that Uber driver to know that they’re not in any trouble,” Becchina said at the time. “They may have seen part of what happened here, but more importantly than that, we believe there could be evidence in that vehicle. Detectives are asking if they could return here to the scene safely or contact any of our police stations or the homicide unit.”

Police were able to get in touch with the Uber driver by 3:58 p.m. and are no longer looking for the blue Jeep Patriot, Becchina said.

At the scene, Candace Logan said she had known the victim since she was 12.

“When we were kids we used to walk these streets together,” she said, staring at the scene from behind the police tape.

“Another senseless death,” Logan said. “It’s just ridiculous.”

This is the second homicide reported Friday and the 10th homicide so far this year, according to data tracked by The Star. Last year became the second deadliest year on record with 171 killings in Kansas City.

Anyone with information was asked to contact the homicide unit at 816-234-5043 or the TIPS Hotline anonymously at 816-474-TIPS (8477).