Northeast News

A week-long search for the man suspected of carrying out a series of shootings along Interstate 70 and Interstate 670 came to an unexpected end Wednesday afternoon (June 24), when investigators discovered a body hidden beneath debris inside the burned Independence home where the search first began.

According to the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department, detectives were contacted around 2 p.m. by a family member of 22-year-old Oscar Sanchez-Munoz, who had been cleaning out the fire-damaged home in the 700 block of South Brookside Avenue. While removing water-soaked debris in the basement, the family reported smelling decomposition and uncovered what they believed to be human remains.

Detectives and crime scene investigators responded to the residence and confirmed a deceased person was buried beneath the debris. Police said the individual was wearing clothing consistent with what Sanchez-Munoz was last seen wearing on the night of June 16.

Based on the clothing and the circumstances of the investigation, detectives said they preliminarily believe the body is Sanchez-Munoz. The Jackson County Medical Examiner will make the official identification and determine the cause and manner of death.

Adding to the confusion regarding the search for Sanchez-Munoz, KCPD released additional photos to the media on the afternoon of Wednesday, June 24, just hours before stating a body believed to be the suspect had been located.

This discovery brings an apparent conclusion to a dramatic investigation that began the evening of June 16 with a string of seemingly random shootings across Kansas City’s east-west highway corridor.

Between approximately 6 and 6:30 p.m. that evening, police received reports of four separate vehicles struck by gunfire as they traveled eastbound on Interstate 670 and Interstate 70. Victims were located near I-670 and Wyoming Street, I-70 and The Paseo, I-70 and Prospect Avenue, and Truman Road and Hardesty Avenue.

Four people were injured in the shootings, including three adults and one teenage juvenile. Police said the teenager and two adults suffered non-life-threatening injuries, while another adult sustained life-threatening injuries.

At roughly the same time, officers responded to what initially appeared to be a serious single-vehicle crash at Truman Road and Bennington Avenue. The driver, an adult male, had crashed into a utility pole and was transported to a hospital. While treating him, medical personnel discovered he had suffered a gunshot wound. He was later pronounced dead, and the case was reclassified as a homicide.

The victim has been identified as Jeremy T. Keenan, W/M, 11/24/1982.

Detectives determined the fatal shooting was connected to the four highway shootings and identified Sanchez-Munoz as the primary suspect in all five cases.

That same evening, investigators tracked Sanchez-Munoz to a residence in Independence, triggering an overnight standoff. During the incident, the home caught fire. After firefighters extinguished the blaze, officers from the Blue Springs and Independence police departments searched the structure but found no trace of the suspect.

Over the following days, Kansas City homicide detectives, fire investigators and Missouri State Fire Marshal K-9 teams conducted an extensive examination of the burned residence while investigators continued searching for Sanchez-Munoz elsewhere. A vehicle believed to have been used in the shootings was recovered from the property, and police publicly identified Sanchez-Munoz as a wanted suspect, noting he also had an outstanding aggravated assault warrant from Wyandotte County, Kansas.

The search remained active until Wednesday’s discovery in the basement.

Police have not yet released any information regarding how Sanchez-Munoz died or whether foul play is suspected. Investigators said the death investigation remains ongoing pending the medical examiner’s findings.