OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – Three people died Sunday after shootings at a Jewish community centre campus and retirement community in suburban Kansas City, and a 15-year-old boy is in critical condition.
Overland Park city spokesman Sean Reilly said two people died at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City campus in Overland Park and one was killed at Village Shalom, which is a retirement community that is several blocks away from the centre.
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A 15-year-old boy who was brought from the scene is in critical condition, Overland Park Medical Center spokeswoman Christine Hamele said.
One person of interest is in custody, Overland Park Fire Department spokesman Jason Rhodes said.
Authorities didn’t immediately release further details about the shootings, including whether the centre and retirement community were targeted because of religion.
The eight-day Jewish festival of Passover begins at sundown Monday.
Overland Park police received multiple calls at about 1 p.m. Sunday, public information officer Gary Mason said in a news release. A news conference is scheduled for Sunday evening.
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The Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City in Overland Park posted on its Facebook page Sunday afternoon that a “shooting incident” happened near its White Theater entrance. A second, later post said that no shooting occurred inside, but in a parking lot.
“Everyone participating in JCC programming has been released to their homes,” the centre said on Facebook.
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St. Louis resident Kristy Straeb, 47, said her sister-in-law Stacie Ventimiglia was at the centre’s pool with a friend and four little girls under the age of 7 for a swimming lesson, which ended about 12:45 p.m. Straeb said they decided at the last minute to get the girls showered.
“They had just gotten the four babies naked, and somebody yelled into the family locker room, ‘We have an active shooter situation. You need to get safe,”‘ Straeb said.
The women got into a cubby area and were “ready to push the little girls into 4 empty lockers,” Straeb said. She noted that the women and their children were not harmed and left the centre about 2:45 p.m. Sunday.
There was a heavy police presence at the campus, which spans several acres in an affluent area of Johnson County, Kan. The entrance to the campus is blocked off. Police have also taped off the entrance to Village Shalom, and several patrol cars and a crime scene unit van are parked in front.
Auditions for the KC SuperStar competition were scheduled to be held Sunday at the Jewish Community Center. On Sunday afternoon, the website for KC SuperStar, which is a singing competition for high school students, said the auditions were cancelled.
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