Topeka police address kidnapping, killings in press conference
TOPEKA (KSNT) - The Topeka Police Department (TPD) addressed community concerns Thursday morning regarding recent crimes and killings in the Capital City.
The TPD held their press conference at 11 a.m. on Thursday, July 24 at the Law Enforcement Center. Officers with the department, including Chief Chris Vallejo, addressed concerns from the community regarding recent violent deaths and the kidnapping of a local child.
"As we give information today, we will not be able to provide all the answers as we have to let the legal process do its job," Vallejo said. "But we want to be as transparent as possible with the work our amazing officers are doing to solve these recent crimes."
Jerry Monasmith with the TPD gave a review of the recent kidnapping of a local two-year-old child and deaths of two locals. He emphasized the quick response from law enforcement following the discovery of the homicide victims, Sean Thornton and Ashley Brown, and safe return of the missing child to his father.
"What I want to reiterate is that all of our homicides receive the same attention from our investigations bureau and from our homicide squad," Monasmith said. "Every one of them is taken seriously and the community, I think, should be reassured we have some of the best detectives at our agency handling all these investigations."
Monasmith said police are asking for information and tips regarding the shooting death of 33-year-old Gerald Avery in Topeka. Officers found Avery suffering from a life-threatening gunshot wound around 2:15 a.m. on Monday, July 21 in the 4500 block of Southwest Topeka Boulevard. He later died at a local hospital of his injuries.
Assistant Chief Mike Cross provided an update on the homicide case of 72-year-old Terry Keller who was found dead in a vehicle at a local community center earlier this month. Police found Keller around 6:45 p.m. on Tuesday, July 15 and launched a homicide investigation shortly afterward. The TPD arrested a 24-year-old Topeka man for his alleged part in Keller's death on Wednesday, July 23.
"I'd like to take a moment to thank the community for their efforts in this, thank our investigators and our agency who worked diligently on this case, and we'd just like to reach out to the friends, the family members of Mr. Keller as well as the Central Park community and anybody across Topeka impacted by this traumatic event and let you know we share condolences with you and we have done everything we can to try to resolve this case," Cross said.
Cross said police are also seeking the public's help in closing the case of 28-year-old Destiny Voss who recently died of a gunshot wound at a local hospital. Police were called around 11:30 p.m. on Sunday, July 6 to a local hospital regarding a gunshot victim, identified as Voss, who later died of his injuries. The TPD discovered the shooting occurred in the 3200 block of Southwest Randolph Avenue.
"If you know something about any of these cases that we're reporting on today, please reach out, please help us," Cross said.
If you have information to share with police regarding any of the above investigations, call 785-368-9400 or send an email to telltpd@topeka.org. You can send in anonymous tips to law enforcement by contacting Shawnee County Crime Stoppers at 785-234-0007 or by clicking here.
"Having five deaths in one month is not something that we at the Topeka Police Department take lightly," Vallejo said. "We're working on several new initiatives to reduce crime and we've also been seeing a downward trend through the middle of the year which I posted online based on the five-year average for crime during this time of the year and crime is going down in Topeka. But I understand the perceptions of safety within the community."
27 News asked police questions about the recent kidnapping and double-homicide case in Oakland, including where the bodies were found, what state they were in and the connection between the suspect and the victims. Police did confirm a familial connection between the suspect and the two homicide victims but did not answer whether the suspect had any mental health issues or what condition the bodies were found in.
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