KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A man suspected in a cutting was shot and injured by a Kansas City, Missouri, police officer on Friday afternoon near a busy Northland intersection, police said.
Capt. Tim Hernandez, a Kansas City Police Department spokesman, said officers were called to a cutting around 4:30 p.m. near Interstate 35 and North Antioch Road, where they found a man with a knife.
Hernandez said officers made “numerous attempts” to get the man to drop the knife, including using a Taser, but those efforts failed.
The man then turned toward an officer and brandished a knife, prompting the officer to discharge his firearm, Hernandez said.
Lots of police tape and officers out here at N Antioch Rd near I-35. Interstate exit is blocked off. Still waiting to hear what happened. @41actionnews pic.twitter.com/BhoeSwqhoc
— Tom Dempsey (@KCTomDempsey) July 19, 2019
The suspect was in stable condition at an area hospital.
He was identified Saturday as 35-year-old Robert Luckinbill.
The victim in the cutting was reported to be in stable condition, Hernandez said.
No officers were injured in the incident. The officer who fired at the suspect was placed on administrative leave, which is standard protocol following an officer-involved shooting.
"It’s yet another example, we go on a lot of calls, but you just never know what kind of call you’re going to go on and what’s going to happen," Hernandez said. "No officer ever wants to be put in a position where they have to use lethal force, but we’ll do whatever to make sure we serve and protect the community and do everything that we can to de-escalate the situation, but unfortunately, sometimes there’s no other choice."
Following the shooting, neighbors who live nearby expressed little surprise about the incident happening in the area.
“I’ve lived here all my life,” Robert Strutton said. “It’s getting a little worse. A lot worse.”
Across the street from the shooting scene, Delano Shelton saw the police tape surrounding multiple businesses on Friday.
He told 41 Action News that the area along North Antioch Road where the shooting occurred unfortunately knows all too well about crime.
“It’s not an everyday thing that happens, but it’s that type of area,” he said. “It’s a mixed pot, but it’s just kind of wild around here sometimes.”
Because the incident happened near a busy intersection, police are asking anyone who saw something to contact the KCPD Homicide Unit at 816-234-5043.
Luckinbill is charged with two counts of second-degree assault and two counts of ACA in Clay County.
