Four Killed, Five Injured in KCK Bar Shooting
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Two men opened fire inside a bar in Kansas City, Kansas, early this (SUN) morning, killing four people and wounding five others. Authorities were searching for the two gunmen, said Officer Thomas Tomasic. He said the two men had apparently gotten into some sort of disagreement with people inside Tequila KC Bar, left, then returned with handguns. Around 40 people were inside the small bar when gunfire erupted around 1:30 am, Tomasic said. The gunfire sent people running for the exits, with the injured leaving trails of blood as they fled. All four men who were killed were Hispanic, but Tomasic said authorities do not believe the shooting was racially motivated. The shooting happened in a neighborhood with a large Hispanic population. Tomasic cautioned that police were still investigating exactly what happened. He said they were reviewing surveillance video and interviewing witnesses while looking for the gunmen. "Obviously being a bar at 1:30, stories vary a lot," he said. Among the dead was one man in his late 50s, another in his mid-30s and two in their mid-20s, police said. Authorities did not immediately release their names.
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Kansas Man Pleads Guilty of Killing Wife, Cousin-in-Law
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas man has pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder in the July 2018 beating and stabbing deaths of his estranged wife and her cousin. The Capital-Journal reports that 41-year-old Bradley Sportsman, of Hollenberg, man entered the plea Friday in Shawnee County District Court and faces nearly 46 years in prison when he's sentenced November 20th. Sportsman is one of three men charged in the Topeka home invasion deaths of 28-year-old Lisa Sportsman and her 17-year-old cousin, Jesse Polinskey. Police say the women had been stabbed and beaten to death. A first-degree murder trial is set December 9th for 32-year-old Richard D. Showalter, of Greenleaf. Twenty-year-old Matthew Hutto, of Clay Center, was sentenced to two life terms after pleading guilty to two first-degree murder counts. Hutto is seeking to withdraw that plea and has a November 15th hearing on the motion.
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Pressure Builds in Kansas for New Vaping Laws
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A national outbreak of a vaping-related lung illness is increasing pressure in Kansas to consider new regulations for vaping and tobacco products. The concern is fueled by an increasing number of cases of vaping-related lung illnesses across the country. Last week, federal health officials reported 1,080 confirmed and probable cases of a vaping-related lung illness. Eighteen people have died. More than two dozen Kansas cities and counties have already passed ordinances raising the age to buy nicotine products from 18 to 21. The Kansas City Star reports lawmakers and advocates say a statewide law could pass next year. Leading Kansas lawmakers on health issues says they are open to several possible regulations, including increasing the purchase age and taxes on tobacco products, and limiting flavors that are attractive to younger vapers.
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Topeka Police Identify Man Killed in Shooting
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Police in Topeka have identified a man killed in an overnight shooting. Topeka police say in a news release that officers were called to a northeast Topeka neighborhood around 2 a.m. Saturday for a report of gunshots. Arriving officers found a man, later identified as 45-year-old Teddy Kleiner of Topeka, suffering from several gunshot wounds. Kleiner was taken to a local hospital, where he died. No arrests had been reported by early Saturday afternoon, and police asked anyone with information to contact CrimeStoppers.
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Autopsy: Apparent Burglar Died from Meth Intoxication
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — An autopsy reports says a 50-year-old Topeka woman suffered methamphetamine intoxication when she collapsed and died while fleeing a home she apparently was burglarizing. The report, released Friday, said her death in June was accidental. The Topeka Capital-Journal acquired a copy of the report from the Shawnee County District Court Clerk's office. Topeka police Lt. Andrew Beightel said officers found Henderson had collapsed near a home. The autopsy said she fled the home and was seen on video collapsing three times. Kansas Department of Corrections records show Henderson was paroled in 2012 after serving prison time for two counts each of burglary, robbery and theft and one count each of aggravated robbery and obstructing the legal process. The crimes were committed in Shawnee, Wyandotte, Butler and Sedgwick counties.
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DEA to Open Office in Garden City as Drug Seizures Increase
GARDEN CITY, Kan. (AP) — The federal Drug Enforcement Administration plans to reopen an office that in closed two years ago in Garden City. The Kansas News Service reports the office is reopening at a time when methamphetamine seizures are increasing in Finney County and some drug-related shootings have been reported in the area. Finney County is one of about a dozen Kansas counties that the DEA classifies as a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. It isn't clear when the office will open. William Callahan, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA's St. Louis Division, said a team of six agents, who have started working, will also monitor opioids. He said the amount of meth seized through August by the county's drug task force more than doubled the amount for all of 2018.
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Kansas City Airport Announces 2 New International Routes
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Travelers will have to more direct flights from Kansas City International Airport to Mexico beginning in February. Airport officials announced this week that Vacation Express will fly one nonstop route to Cancun and another to Puerto Vallarta on Sundays. The Kansas City Star reports other airlines serve Cancun from Kansas City but the airport has not had nonstop service to Puerto Vallarta since Frontier ended service there in 2015. Vacation Express is a tour company that operates charter flights to sunny destinations. The announcement comes just days after Icelandair announced it would drop seasonal service to Reykjavik — Kansas City's only nonstop transatlantic service.
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