BREAKING NEWS: Police find body on East 10th Street

UPDATE: The victim has been identified as 27-year-old Larrie Latimore of Kansas City. There are no suspects in custody and detectives ask that anyone with information to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-8477.

FROM EARLIER: Today, at about 7:58am, Kansas City Police Officers found the body of a man in the 2400 block of East 10th Street. Witnesses say they heard gun shots around 3 a.m. Officers found the man, who has not yet been identified, in nearby yard.

The man appeared to be the victim of a homicide and detectives are responding to the scene to investigate.

UPDATE: Police close Belmont

Officials with the Kansas city Police Department say officers closed Belmont for a little over an hour this morning as they were attempting to arrest a man with several warrants.

police did not say who the man was nor give further information about the arrest.

In the photo below, one officer offers water to two individuals who had been arrested this morning. Police were not releasing any details at that time.

Police close Belmont for investigation

Officers would not say why, but the Kansas City Police Department this morning closed off a significant portion of Belmont Road just north of St. John Avenue.

Police had two men in custody and even had SWAT on hand for what appeared to be an on going investigation of a house across the street from the Super Flea. Officers would not comment on what they were looking for or even what had happened.

For more on this, check here or in Next week's copy of The Northeast News

Police investigating death of jail inmate

Kansas City detectives are investigating the death of a 51-year-old man who died at a hospital after collapsing while in jail.

Allen L. Streit, 51, was arrested on Monday at 4:45 p.m. after officers pulled him over at Roberts Street and Indiana Avenue in Northeast. Streit was a passenger and was questioned after the vehicle responded with warrants. Streit was removed from the car and while being interviewed by the officers, swallowed what officers said looked like a plastic bag.

Officers found plastic bags containing what preliminarily appeared to be methamphetamine in a container Streit had in the car. Streit was placed under arrest for possession of methamphetamine and a municipal warrant for passing bad checks.

At about 8:30 this Tuesday, a detective was trying to question Streit about the narcotics. The detective said Streit was acting strangely and would not leave the detention area with him. Officials alerted the detention staff about his condition and before Streit could be returned to his cell he collapsed.

Jail staff began immediate life saving measures and notified MAST. Streit was transported to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead shortly after arriving.

The investigation is still on going.

Police searching for car involved in morning bus stop assults

Police are still searching for a vehicle used in five assaults this morning at several bus stops around Kansas City

Police looking for a 2000 white Chevy Malibu that see fleeing the scene where several people waiting at bus stop were shot with a pellet gun. It was occupied by at least 3 black male teens, possibly juveniles.

The locations are as follows:
6:00 a.m. Swope Parkway and Prospect Avenue
6:05 a.m. 35th and Prospect Avenue
7:00 a.m. Independence Avenue and Garfield
7:20 a.m. 8th and Lydia
7:50 a.m. 12th and Paseo

Anyone with information in regard to the assaults is asked to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-8477.

Man Charged in East Bottoms Drive-By Shooting

Jackson County Prosecutors on Friday charged Jovell L. Swopes with first degree assault and armed criminal action in a Tuesday evening drive by shooting of Irvin Dale House in the 700 block of North Kansas.

House told detectives that he was walking in his old neighborhood when he heard gunshots. House tried to run away from the shots but, according to witness reports, was unable to escape Swopes, who fired at him repeatedly.

House was transported to a hospital and was treated for multiple gunshot wounds to his legs. Witnesses positively identified Swopes as the shooter from a police photo spread.

When contacted by detectives, Swopes denied any involvement in the shooting. Prosecutors have requested a $250,000 bond.

Mobile Crime Watch gets $75,000 from county

After hearing that programs might get cut or budgets slashed, Northeast's Mobile Crime Watch this week was told it was getting a major boost in funding from the county.

On Monday, County Legislators and members of COMBAT approved a plan that would give the area crime watch group nearly $75,000 to help fund programs and projects throughout Northeast.

The grant, which is $51,000 more than what the county gave to the Mobile Crime Watch last year, came from the county's COMBAT program.

Officials with the crime watch said the money would be used to help publish bi-lingual crime prevention materials and bolster community involvement programs through the Whatsoever Community Center and other organizations.

Northeast taggers caught on tape

A battery of video cameras mounted on stores in the 5900 block of St. John Avenue has captured the images of two men spraying graffiti.

Videotapes show the men walking past Leon's Super Market and Leon's Truck Accessories at approximately 1:45 a.m. Tuesday, May 20. The men then tagged a meat truck and the walls of both the super market and truck-parts store. One man is beefy and seems to have a shaved head. The other is more slight in build.

Officer Shannon Hansen, who is investigating the case, says the police department will enlarge the images with the hope of getting pictures good enough to release. Hansen asked those attending Indian Mound's meeting on June 7 to keep an eye out for the men, who are suspected of repeatedly tagging several stores on St. John east of Hardesty.

"I'd say these guys are in their late teens or early twenties," Hansen said. "The video has to be blown up to get a good look at their faces, but it shows how they are built. We think they are white or Hispanic."

One of the taggers uses the word "Cricket" in his graffiti.

Kim Do, who operates a hair salon just west of Leon's store, says one wall of her building has been tagged repeatedly.

"I'd say six times since November," she says. "But I just keep going back and painting it out."

— Dennis Stack
Special to The Northeast News

Northeast Industrial businesses offer reward to catch A/C thieves

Northeast and east Bottoms industrial businesses are teaming up to catch the thieves stealing more than a dozen air conditioners from around the area.

They are putting up additional money for anyone who comes forward with tips that could lead to an arrest.

From the Northeast Industrial Association:

Between March 24th and April 28th there were 14 incidents of A/C theft and destruction in The Northeast Area that were reported to the Police Department. It is estimated that the damage to property as a result of these thefts is approaching $100,000. To our knowledge there have not been any incidents since April 28th.

The Northeast Industrial Association in conjunction with several businesses in the area and in partnership with the Kansas Crime City Commission's TIPS Hotline have posted a reward of $1,250 in addition to the TIPS Hotline reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrest of the individual or individuals responsible for these thefts.

Police Identify two killed in traffic accident last night

From police:

The people killed in the fatal accident at 23rd and Montgall last night at about 8 pm have been identified as Tiffany A. Berry, 33, and Suavae R. Rouser, 14, of Kansas City. Two other passengers were in the car and they received minor injuries. They were daughters of Ms. Berry. Police have a 42-year-old male in custody who was driving the truck.

The male is a parole absconder and is being held on a no bond warrant. He will likely not be charged with any crimes related to the accident today.

Officers stopped the truck near 23rd Street and Myrtle because the vehicle was driving erratically. When the vehicle stopped, two passengers in the truck got out and were taken into custody by the officers. The truck fled the area westbound on 23rd street. The officers stayed with the passengers and told the dispatcher about the truck. Near 23rd and Montgall Avenue, the truck collided with a 1999 Chevrolet Malibu driven by Ms. Berry. The truck flipped onto its side and slid into the intersection of 23rd and Prospect where other officers were waiting. Officers took the driver into custody after he climbed out of the truck and tried to run away.

One of the passengers from the truck had cocaine in his possession. He was placed under arrest and is being held for possession of narcotics.

BREAKING NEWS: Police arrest two for drug dealing at Capri Motel

Officers from the Kansas City Street Narcotic Unit and SWAT arrested two today for dealing drugs out of the Capri Motel.

Around 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, officers served a search warrent on the thrid floor motel room near the corner of Paseo Boulevard and Independence Avenue.

Sgt. Chip Huth, who lead the raid, said police had been watching the two for some time before they served the warrant today. The two had been living in the motel room and using it as a base for their dealing.

Huth said police have had some problems with drug dealing out of the motel in the past. Managers, who watched the arrest would not comment.

Police did not release the names of the man and the woman who were arrested.

BREAKING NEW: Mid-day shooting at Lawndale and St. John

Police are investigating a mid-day shooting at the corner of St. John and Lawndale avenues.

Witnesses say a car pulled up to the corner and began firing at two juveniles across the street. After firing roughly half a dozen shots, the car left the scene. The two juveniles, who were unhurt during the shooting fled on foot north on Topping.

Several .45 shell casings were found in the gutter near were witnesses said the car stopped before suspects began firing, which is directly across the street from The Northeast News offices.

Police are asking for help and if anyone has information to call the TIPS hotline at 474-TIPS.

BREAKING NEWS: Man charged in connection to Wednesday's shooting

Jackson County Prosecutors today announced they were filing charges against Taqwa Thompson, 18, for the murder of a man near the corner of Scarritt and North Mersington.

Police say Thompson and another man walked up to 55-year-old Ricardo Jimenez as he was standing in the doorway of his apartment building and shot him.

Thompson then fled. Police caught up with him near the corner of Lexington and Lebelle — just to the west of Concourse Park — where police say they also found clothing belonging to Thompson and a handgun.

Police say the two men arrested Wednesday afternoon were the only two invovled, despite earlier reports that three men had been seen fleeing the scene.

Prosecutors are requesting a $250,000 cash bond.

BREAKING NEWS: Police searching for man invovled in shooting at North Mersington and Scarritt

Police continue to search for suspects involved in a shooting at an apartment building near the corner of North Mersington and Scarritt.

Around 11 a.m. today police were called to an apartment building at 209 Mersington where they found a man in his 50s dead on the front steps of the building.

Immediately, police began their search and tracked two of the three suspects to the St. John Market just down the street from the apartment building. When police caught up to them they fled. There were shortly arrested on the bridge just to the west of Concourse Park.

A third suspect is still at large. if you have any information, police are asking that you call the TIPS hotline at 816-474-TIPS

Graffiti abatement programs survive cuts

This is no easy time for the City Council or Mayor as they begin the slicing and dicing of the city's massive budget.

But word coming down from the top floors of City Hall is that one program that might survive the proverbial chopping block is a new graffiti abatement program coming from the Mayor's office.

The program would create a graffiti abatement coordinator that will string together department heads from all over the city to get them to remove graffiti from their property — such as parks, public works and others.

The program would also create more awareness, cooperation and help among neighborhoods, which are dealing with much of the graffiti by themselves.

There is still no word, though on how much of the programs proposed $200,000 will make it though the final budget process. Today the city heard from Northeast representatives asking for funding for programs here in Northeast.

BREAKING NEWS: Charges filed in Gladstone Blvd. shooting

Jackson County Prosecutors today charged Syreta Tosan of murder in the first degree for her involvement in an early morning shooting here.

Prosecutors say Tosan deliberately murdered John Barbieri.

Court documents say she told Kansas City Police she shot her boyfriend after he forced her to smoke crack and sexually assaulted her. She pulled a gun from her bag and shot him several times. Tosan then ran to a nearby residence and called the police.

Police responded to the residence where they found the victim dead from an apparent gunshot wound. After an investigation was conducted, a gun was found under a pillow by the victim and two crack pipes were found on the floor at the foot of the bed.

— Kristi L. Dalberg, reporter

For more on this, be sure to check back to www.northeastnews.net

Police find body in Northeast home

Police are investigating an early morning homicide at the 5500 block of Saida Avenue.

Police are not releasing details but say the person might have been involved in a disturbance at the 5200 block of Gladstone earlier in the night. After being called to the area, police say they noticed an open door to a home where they found the body.

Check The Northeast News on Wednesday for more on this story.