In the late summer of 2022, a gathering in Derby, Kansas, turned tragic, ending the life of 28-year-old Raul Aguilar III. The young man, a father of three from Wichita, was at a party in the early morning hours of Sunday, August 28, 2022. A disturbance erupted among several people at the residence located in the 1200 block of N. Westview. According to his family, Aguilar was attempting to intervene and break up a domestic dispute when the violence escalated.
During the altercation, a
gunshot was fired, striking Aguilar. Emergency services were called to the scene around 2:30 a.m., and he was rushed to a nearby hospital with a serious gunshot wound. Despite the efforts of medical personnel, Raul Aguilar III succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead. The party, which had an estimated five people in attendance, became the scene of a homicide investigation.
In the days following the fatal shooting, Derby police identified a suspect with the help of tips from the community after releasing photos to the public. The man sought in connection with Aguilar's death was 22-year-old Demarc Maurice Burgess of Wichita. On the Monday following the incident, Burgess turned himself in to the authorities. He was accompanied by an attorney and did not provide a statement to the police.
Demarc Maurice Burgess was arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder and later faced a formal charge of second-degree murder and a misdemeanor charge of battery. Authorities stated that it did not appear Aguilar and Burgess knew each other prior to the party. The investigation into the fight that preceded the shooting continued as the case was turned over to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's Office for prosecution. Burgess's bond was set at $500,000.
