In the late afternoon of Friday, February 17, 2023, a violent altercation in Pittsburg, Kansas, tragically ended the life of 51-year-old David Duane Mays, a White male from the nearby town of Weir. The incident unfolded around 2:30 p.m. near the address of 1023 N. Main Street. It was then that the Pittsburg Police Department received a distressing 911 call reporting a shooting. The caller was later identified as one of the suspects, 43-year-old Collin Pal Gebford.
Upon their arrival, law enforcement officers discovered Mays lying in the roadway, suffering from a fatal gunshot wound to his chest. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The gravity of the situation prompted the involvement of the Kansas Bureau of Investigation and the Crawford County Sheriff's Office to launch a homicide investigation. Through their preliminary work, investigators determined that a confrontation had taken place, which ultimately led to the deadly gunfire that killed Mays. Another man who was present at the scene was questioned by police and subsequently released.
The investigation quickly led to the identification of two suspects. Collin Pal Gebford was arrested and faced charges of attempted premeditated first-degree murder and felony murder. He was taken into custody without incident and booked into the Crawford County Jail. The following day, authorities located and apprehended the second suspect, 32-year-old Travis Blake Conness of Neosho, Missouri. He was also arrested without incident and booked into the Crawford County Jail on similar charges of attempted premeditated first-degree murder and felony murder. The Crawford County Attorney's Office is prosecuting the case against both men, who are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. An autopsy for David Duane Mays was scheduled for February 21, 2023.
