A man in his 70s opened fire Sunday outside of a Jewish community center and nearby retirement community, killing three people, authorities said, while the FBI is joining local police in the search for a motive.
Overland Park Police Chief John Douglass said at a news conference Sunday evening that a person who had been reported to be in critical condition earlier was among three killed in the attacks, which apparently occurred minutes apart.
"Today is a sad and very tragic day," Douglass said. "As you might imagine we are only three hours into this investigation. There's a lot of innuendo and a lot of assertions going around. There is really very little hardcore information."
Shots were fired behind the Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City in a parking lot about 1 p.m., Douglass said. One male died at the scene, another male died at a hospital. The gunman then fled and opened fire at nearby Village Shalom, killing a female, before later being arrested near an elementary school. Two other people were shot at, but the gunfire missed them, Douglass said.
Late Sunday, family members identified two of the three people killed.
Will Corporon issued a statement saying his father, Dr. William Lewis Corporan, and nephew, Reat Griffin Underwood, were killed. The family is Christian.
Douglass said it was too early in the investigation to determine if the shootings were hate crimes. The Jewish festival of Passover begins Monday.
He described the suspect as a man in his 70s who is not from Kansas. He said the suspect is being held at the Johnson County Detention Center, but did not provide further information. The FBI says it is assisting in the investigation.
"We have no indication he knew the victims," Douglass said, adding that the suspect was not known to Kansas City-area authorities before the shootings. Douglass said a shotgun was used, and investigators were trying to determine whether a handgun and assault-style rifle also were involved.
The Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City in Overland Park posted on its Facebook page Sunday afternoon that a "shooting incident" happened near its White Theater entrance. A second, later post said that no shooting occurred inside, but in a parking lot.
"Everyone participating in JCC programming has been released to their homes," the center said on Facebook. "Our hearts go out to the families who have suffered loss on this tragic day. Our heartfelt gratitude as well to all those in Kansas City and around the world who have expressed sympathy, concern and support."
President Obama called the shootings "horrific."
"Michelle and I offer our thoughts and prayers to the families and friends who lost a loved one and everyone affected by this tragedy," he said Sunday night in a statement. "I have asked my team to stay in close touch with our federal, state and local partners and provide the necessary resources to support the ongoing investigation."
There is a heavy police presence at the complex and the entrance is blocked off. Rod Wheeler, a former criminal investigator, told Fox News that the area of the shootings is very upscale.
Auditions for the KC SuperStar competition were scheduled to be held Sunday at the Jewish Community Center. On Sunday afternoon, the website for KC SuperStar, which is a singing competition for high school students, said the auditions were cancelled.
Around 75 people – most of them children -- were inside the theater in the building at the time of the shooting KCTV reports.
“My son and I were walking into the Jewish Community Center this afternoon for an umpire clinic, around the westside and all of the sudden we heard a gunshot, a pretty loud gunshot,” Mike Metcalf, an area resident, told Fox 4. “I turned to look to my right and I can see a man standing outside a car with a shotgun, what to me looked like a shotgun, and there was somebody laying on the ground.”
St. Louis resident Kristy Straeb, 47, said her sister-in-law Stacie Ventimiglia was at the center's pool with a friend and four little girls under the age of 7 for a swimming lesson, which ended about 12:45 p.m. Straeb said they decided at the last minute to get the girls showered.
"They had just gotten the four babies naked, and somebody yelled into the family locker room, 'We have an active shooter situation. You need to get safe,'" Straeb said.
The women got into a cubby area and were "ready to push the little girls into 4 empty lockers," Straeb said. She noted that the women and their children were not harmed and left the center about 2:45 p.m. Sunday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
