Oct 24, 2020

Search continues for Kan. youth football game gunman

Posted Oct 24, 2020 7:00 AM
Photo of the suspect released by Wichita Police
Photo of the suspect released by Wichita Police

SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting at a youth football game in Wichita.

Just after 9:30p.m. police responded to gunshots at Stryker Sports Complex, 2999 N Greenwich Road in Wichita, according to Sgt. Dan Harty with the Wichita police department's homicide division.

A short time later a man identified as Marquell Nolan, 31, Wichita, arrived at a local hospital with gunshot wounds and died.

Shooting suspect -photo Wichita Police
Shooting suspect -photo Wichita Police

Investigators have learned that Nolan was at the complex and became involved in a verbal altercation with a suspect on the west side of the stadium. The argument turned into a physical altercation and the suspect pulled out a handgun, fired multiple shots at Nolan, according to Sgt. Harty.

A private vehicle transported Nolan to the hospital and the suspect left the complex.  The shooting was not random or related the games being played or officiated Wednesday evening, according to Sgt. Hardy. Police believe Nolan and the suspect knew each other and had been involved in an ongoing feud.

There was a large crowd in attendance as a football game was underway at the stadium at the time of the shooting, according to Sgt. Hardy. There were also separate games being played at the nearby soccer fields to the west of the incident.

The missing yellow shoe-photo Wichita Police
The missing yellow shoe-photo Wichita Police

Late Thursday morning, police released photos of the suspect and a yellow shoe. A juvenile at the complex had picked up the shoe and it was placed in a vehicle, according to officer Charlie Davidson.  The shoe is evidence in the case.

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SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting at a youth football game in Wichita.

Just before 10p.m. Wednesday, officers responded to report of a disturbance at Stryker Sports Complex, 2999 N Greenwich Road in Wichita, according to police.

Police on the scene of the shooting investigation -photo KWCH
Police on the scene of the shooting investigation -photo KWCH

At the scene, officers reported hearing gunshots and saw people leaving the scene. EMS transported one victim to a local hospital where he died.

On social media late Wednesday, Capital Sports Institute Executive Board shared that they would cancel the rest of the youth football season due to the shooting.

"It is with a heavy heart that we announce the termination of the 2020 Wichita Youth Football Season. We are feeling incredibly disappointed, saddened, and discouraged as it pertains to this community.

This youth football league was developed with a genuine hope to change the culture surrounding youth football in Wichita. To give inner-city children the opportunity to play under the lights on turf fields, with large crowds cheering them on to victory.

To allow those children to feel cared for, important, and worthy. To give families a safe, secure environment where their children can learn to play sports. To allow the Wichita youth some time to simply be kids in the midst of a global pandemic. Instead, we were forced as a league to deal with fights, litter, and arguments on a weekly basis, ultimately leading to a permanent Wichita Police Dept. presence and heightened security, clean-up crews, and a permanent admission fee needed to pay for those extra costs.

As most of you know, tonight during the last game of the evening, a gun was snuck into the premises at Stryker and someone was fatally shot. As a league, we can no longer safely continue with the 2020 season, as it is clearly too dangerous for the children and families of this city.

Our pleas and desires to change the culture of youth football in Wichita have consistently fallen on deaf ears. We are sending our hopes and prayers not only to the injured party's family, but also to all the families involved in this league and most importantly, to the children who have lost the great opportunity this year to simply play football.

It is our genuine hope that as a city, as a people, as a culture, we can and will do better."

Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to contact police. Name of the victim has not been released.