On the evening of January 17, 2017, violence erupted in a residential neighborhood of Independence, Missouri, claiming the life of forty-one-year-old William Louis Elliott II. Police officers were dispatched to the 1500 block of South Cedar Avenue, near Truman Road, around 4:45 p.m. following reports of a shooting. Upon arrival, first responders discovered Elliott suffering from a gunshot wound.
He was transported to a local hospital for emergency treatment, but he ultimately succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead.
Investigators quickly began piecing together the events leading up to the homicide, identifying specific individuals they believed were connected to the incident. Within days of the shooting, the Independence Police Department released information seeking the public's assistance in locating three persons of interest. The first individual identified was thirty-eight-year-old Paul L. Goble, a man described as standing 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighing approximately 180 pounds, who was known to use the alias 'New York.'
As the investigation progressed, detectives expanded their search to include two additional suspects. Authorities requested help finding forty-year-old Michelle L. Gregory and thirty-seven-year-old Ralph E. Mitchell III. Police provided physical descriptions for both, noting that Gregory was approximately 5 feet 6 inches tall and 115 pounds, while Mitchell was described as 5 feet 6 inches tall and 160 pounds. Law enforcement cautioned the public that Mitchell was considered armed and dangerous. Despite the identification of these suspects and the public appeals for their whereabouts, information regarding subsequent arrests or convictions specifically related to Elliott's murder has not been widely publicized in available reports.
