SHAWNEE, Kan. – A shooting in Shawnee is prompting larger conversation about safe places to exchange items posted for sale online.
Shawnee police said it happened around 12:30 Thursday morning at the Arbor Square Apartment Homes located in the 7600 block of King Street.
While many of the residents in the apartment complex said they were sleeping at the time of the shooting, one neighbor said he heard some sort of commotion on the floor above his, followed by three gun shots.
Police said the victim, who is in stable condition, contacted someone to sell an item. When he left his house to make the sale, he was assaulted by two men, one of whom shot him.
The suspects fled the scene and have not been located.
Shawnee police want residents to know they have a safer solution for online sale situations like these. They set up two bright green “internet exchange” parking spots at their department.
"We wanted to make sure that they had a safe, secure place to come and make an exchange and feel safe while they're doing it,” Julie Breithaupt, city communications manager, said.
In the off-chance that things go south, Breithaupt said officers will be right there to help.
"They could just run right here into the police department lobby, our officers could pull up the tape and see what happened and help them out from there,” Breithaupt said.
The two parking spots sit between the police and fire stations and are under 24-hour surveillance from two different angles, allowing people to buy or sell items from arranged online deals in a safe location.
Shawnee police hope this will prevent situations like Thursday morning’s shooting from happening again.
The investigation is ongoing.
