In the fall of 2017, a promising young life was tragically cut short in Kansas City, Kansas. December Htoo, a 15-year-old male who had escaped with his family from a refugee camp in Myanmar, was shot and killed on the evening of November 17th. He was working at a coin laundry in the Argentine neighborhood, closing up for the night, when the incident occurred. His body was discovered the following morning. The senseless act left his family, friends, and the community in shock.
Htoo was remembered as an intelligent and hardworking student at J.C. Harmon High School, where he was a member of the wrestling team and was known for his joyful and friendly nature. He was fluent in English, his second language, and had aspirations of one day becoming a mixed martial arts fighter.
For years, the investigation into Htoo's murder remained cold. The initial inquiry was hampered by a lack of eyewitnesses and only grainy surveillance footage, which provided few leads. Detectives had shell casings from the scene but little else to go on. Despite the challenges, law enforcement continued to work the case, and the victim services unit of the Kansas City, Kansas Police Department remained in contact with Htoo's grieving family, who waited patiently for justice. The security camera inside the laundromat had not been working on the night of the murder, adding to the difficulties faced by investigators.
A significant break in the case finally came in 2021 when police in Lenexa recovered a gun during a drug-related arrest. A detective on the Htoo case interviewed the gun's owner, who claimed it had been stolen by a young man named Luis Samano. In 2022, forensic testing confirmed that this was the weapon used to kill December Htoo. However, there was still not enough evidence to place Samano, who was 17 at the time of the murder, at the crime scene. The case saw further progress when a detective with the department's cold case unit re-examined the evidence. This fresh review of the minimal video evidence from nearby cameras finally connected a car at the scene to Samano.
In the summer of 2024, nearly seven years after the tragic event, an arrest was made. Luis Samano, then 24 years old, was charged with murder and attempted aggravated robbery in connection with December Htoo's death. At the time the charges were filed, Samano was already being held in a state mental health facility following a 2019 conviction for two felony arson charges in a separate case. The resolution of the cold case brought a sense of relief and gratitude to Htoo's family and the community that had mourned his loss for so long.
