The Johnson County District Attorney’s Office charged four more teenagers with first-degree murder in the shooting death of a Kansas City, Mo., man in downtown Shawnee last week.
- The charges announced Monday are against four 17-year-olds and come on top of a murder charge for the same killing against an 18-year-old who was charged Saturday.
Catch up quick: All five teens are now charged with first-degree murder in the killing of Jarod Rogers, 25, who was found Wednesday evening in the parking lot behind a strip of businesses near Johnson Drive and Nieman Road.
- The accused teens include Fernando Reyes-Lara, 18, of Olathe; Sabrina Clark, 17, of Gardner; Kyleigh Guzman, 17, of Gardner; Roger Hernandez, 17, of Olathe; and Fernando Gonzalez-Prado, 17, of Overland Park.
Court records say Reyes-Lara messaged the “juvenile co-conspirators to set up a robbery” in what prosecutors allege was part of an arranged drug sale.
- In addition to the murder charge, the five defendants also face conspiracy to commit aggravated robbery and felony aggravate robbery charges.
- Guzman is also charged with felony use of a communication facility, with the criminal complaint alleging she used a cell phone to help set up the crime.
- Prosecutors have filed motions to have the four 17-year-olds prosecuted as adults.
Backstory: Shawnee Police were called to the parking lot behind Pegah’s Family Restaurant, 11005 Johnson Drive, just before 6:40 p.m. Wednesday evening.
- Rogers was found there suffering from a gunshot wound and was rushed to Overland Park Regional Medical Center in critical condition, where he remained until being pronounced dead Friday.
- Reyes-Lara was arrested Thursday afternoon after leading police from multiple local agencies on a high-speed chase that ended in Olathe.
One other thing: Shawnee Police confirm Rogers’ killing is the third homicide recorded in the city in 2022, after Shawnee saw zero homicides in both 2020 and 2021.
