KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Court documents reveal new details in the death of a 93-year-old woman earlier this month in the 3800 block of North Briarcliff Drive.
Kelisha Reeves is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Diana Barco.
When the caretaker of Barco arrived Tuesday morning, she noticed something was off. Barco’s walker was on the front porch, and the doors off the patio were open and unlocked, according to a court document.
The caretaker searched through the home and found the old woman face down in the shower. She then went outside to call 911.
According to a court document, the shower hose was pulled out of the wall and wrapped around Barco’s body. She was wet, but there was no standing water in the tub. Detectives also noted blood in the doorway of the bathroom from the hallway, as well as bloody clothes next to the tub.
Medical examiners determined her death was a homicide. She sustained multiple stab wounds to the back of her head/neck area, and it was clear she had been strangled, per the court document.
During the investigation, detectives learned Reeves was connected to two other crimes in the area on June 8.
She was listed as a suspect in a domestic violence property damage incident, where she was said to have poured chemicals into the gas tank of her ex-boyfriend’s Ford F-150, and an arson in the 3800 block of N. Briarcliff Road.
Reeves was heard saying, “If I can’t have a place to live, neither can you,” as she walked away from the arson scene, which was in the same area as Barco’s home.
She was ultimately taken into custody after friends she was staying with looked her up on Casenet, which houses Missouri court records, and saw there was a warrant out for her arrest in Clay County, a court document said. The friends said she had asked to come over but was acting weird, so they wanted her to leave.
Reeves was arrested June 13 in Jasper County, and KCPD detectives spoke with her June 15.
During the interview, Reeves told detectives she was in the area when Barco saw her crying, gave her some water and let her sleep on the front porch bench. Reeves also said Barco gave her a credit card to get to a “safe place far away,” which she used to take a ride-share, buy new clothes and rent a car.
On June 18, detectives learned lab results found that a blood print at the scene matched the known fingerprints of Reeves.
Reeves is due in court June 30 for a bond review hearing. She is being held in the Clay County Detention Center on a $1 million bond for the murder charge.
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