Jackson County prosecutors on Tuesday charged a 27-year-old with four felonies for allegedly shooting a man at a 7-Eleven gas station in Kansas City’s Parkview neighborhood.
Ali Bwanadi, of Kansas City, is accused of first-degree assault, unlawful weapon use and two counts of armed criminal action in Jackson County. He was being held in the county jail Thursday on a $125,000 bond, according to online records.
On April 27, around 2:30 p.m., Kansas City police officers were called to a reported shooting at 1701 Independence Avenue.
The gunshot victim was on the ground next to a vehicle as medical students with Kansas City University, which is across the street, had cut off his clothes and were attempting to find his wounds. He was taken to the hospital by ambulance with serious injuries.
Police spoke with a witness who recalled that a man in the store had been looking at her, and he had tried to speak with her. She said her boyfriend intervened, telling him to go away, and the man walked off.
As they were filling up the gas tank, she said, her boyfriend was beside her in the front passenger seat. Then she heard several loud sounds and her window shattered. She looked over and saw her boyfriend bleeding.
The gunshot victim was interviewed as well. He recalled being assaulted by a man he’d had words with, saying the shooter fired into the car 10 times.
On Monday, witnesses picked Bwanadi out of a photo lineup and identified him as the shooter, a Kansas City police detective wrote in charging documents. He was arrested and made an initial court appearance Wednesday.
Online court records did not list a defense attorney for Bwanadi.
Under Missouri law, the 27-year-old faces a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted of first-degree assault or unlawful weapon use.