Man receives 52-year prison sentence for deadly Topeka shooting

TOPEKA (KSNT) - The Shawnee County District Attorney's Office says a man convicted of killing another Topeka man in 2022 has been sentenced.

Emmanuel R. Walker was charged in connection to the 2022 killing of Kirk Sexton. Walker was convicted by a Shawnee County jury in July 2023 after he entered a plea of guilty for criminal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He was also found guilty of intentional murder in the second degree.

Walker received a sentence of more than 52 years in prison for his crimes, according to the Shawnee County DA's Office.

Law enforcement was called around 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, July 16, 2022, to the 900 block of SW Eighth Street for a person suffering from a gunshot wound. Upon arrival, police found a man, later identified as Sexton, and pronounced him dead at the scene.

Topeka police identified Walker as the suspect a few days later. Walker was later found by law enforcement in Erie, Pennsylvania before he was brought back to Topeka to face a charge of murder in the first degree.

“Although Walker fled our jurisdiction after committing these crimes, this case effectively shows that criminals will not escape justice in our community," Shawnee County DA Mike Kagay said.

Law enforcement later released an affidavit detailing witness testimony of what took place just prior to the shooting.

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