On the evening of April 4, 2016, Gary E. Cutchlow Sr. decided to venture out of his home for the first time in weeks. He had been recovering from a bout of the flu and, feeling well enough to leave the house, chose to visit his family at a residence on South Benton Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri. The visit was filled with laughter as he spent time with his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, enjoying the company of his loved ones on a pleasant spring evening. As the gathering wound down around 6:30 p.m., he prepared to depart but paused on the front porch to speak with one of his granddaughters.
At that moment, the quiet of the neighborhood was shattered when a vehicle passed by the home and unleashed a volley of gunfire. The 60-year-old African American man was struck by the bullets, as was a second individual standing nearby. Emergency responders arrived at the scene to find him suffering from critical gunshot wounds. Despite immediate efforts to save him, including rushing him to a local hospital, he succumbed to his injuries. The second victim survived the attack with non-life-threatening injuries.
Investigators from the Kansas City Police Department processed the scene, classifying the death as a homicide. In the wake of the tragedy, family members remembered him as a gregarious figure who loved fishing, playing dominoes, and working with his hands as a self-employed construction worker. He was described as a devoted family man who had shielded his grandchildren during the chaos. Despite the passage of time, authorities have not announced any arrests or identified public suspects in connection with the drive-by shooting. The case remains open as detectives continue to seek information from the community to bring closure to the unsolved murder.
