Current:Home > ScamsO'Reilly Auto Parts worker charged in strangulation death of suspected shoplifter-LoTradeCoin
O'Reilly Auto Parts worker charged in strangulation death of suspected shoplifter
View Date:2024-12-23 21:13:02
An employee at a O'Reilly's Auto Parts store in Kansas has been charged with second-degree murder after an alleged shoplifter died following a fight.
Wyandotte County District Attorney’s Office announced charges against Carl Kemppainen, 39, in the death of 23-year-old Diamond Steen.
It's unclear whether Kemppainen has an attorney. He has been released after posting a $125,000 bond, court records show.
More:61-year-old woman falls to death off 150-foot cliff at Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina
What happened?
Officers were dispatched to the auto parts store on the evening of Sept. 19 in response to a disturbance and were told that two men had been shoplifting, said the Kansas City, Kansas Police Department in a statement.
Police learned that a fight between store employees and the alleged shoplifters resulted in a death. Officers attempted CPR on Steen, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Wyandotte County District Attorney Mark Dupree said at a news conference that Steen died from strangulation.
“The deceased’s airway was completely stopped and that ultimately caused his death," he said, citing an autopsy.
The second alleged shoplifter was taken to a hospital with minor injuries, police said.
More:Day of adventure turns into nightmare for Canadian amusement park riders
It's been 'nightmare' for Steen's family
Steen's Facebook posts show that he was a proud father, saying "look at my handsome boy" on one post about his son. In another post by a woman who identified herself as the mother of Steen's children, she said she's pregnant with his child, set to be born in a month
Steen's family told KCTV that they're devastated by his death and that employees at the store should have handled the situation differently.
“It’s disturbing. It’s sickening. It’s a nightmare to have to navigate through this," Steen’s aunt, Sawnya Helm, told the outlet. "It’s not even a nightmare, you wake up from nightmares. There’s no waking up from this."
Steen’s cousin, Ivonnah Echols, told the station that store employees should have just contacted the police.
“You are supposed to stay away from the subject and call the police because you’re taking not even yourself at risk you’re taking the customers at risk, you’re taking the associates at the store at risk,” Echols said.
'Make no mistake'
During the news conference, Dupree said: "Make no mistake, it is law enforcements job to do the policing, no one else's."
In a statement to USA TODAY, O'Reilly Auto Parts said they're "deeply disturbed by the events, death and injuries that occurred at our store in Kansas City, Kansas. We are cooperating fully with the police investigation.”
veryGood! (554)
Related
- Guns smuggled from the US are blamed for a surge in killings on more Caribbean islands
- Major cases await as liberals exert control of Wisconsin Supreme Court
- Texas separates migrant families, detaining fathers on trespassing charges in latest border move
- Tickets for Lionel Messi's first road MLS match reaching $20,000 on resale market
- USMNT Concacaf Nations League quarterfinal Leg 1 vs. Jamaica: Live stream and TV, rosters
- Father drowns while saving his 3 children in New Jersey river
- Breaking Bad Actor Mark Margolis Dead at 83
- A World War II warship will dock in three US cities and you can explore it. Here's how and where
- Megan Fox Is Pregnant, Expecting Baby With Machine Gun Kelly
- Ahead of crucial season, Cowboys QB Dak Prescott is 'embracing' mounting criticism
Ranking
- Video shows masked man’s apparent attempt to kidnap child in NYC; suspect arrested
- Trump pleads not guilty in election indictment, new Taylor Swift tour dates: 5 Things podcast
- Georgia man posed as missionary, spent $30 million donated for Bibles, feds say
- California judge arrested in connection with wife’s killing
- Bowl projections: SEC teams joins College Football Playoff field
- Celtics' Larry Bird steps up in Lakers' 'Winning Time': Meet the actor playing the NBA legend
- Dua Lipa faces new 'Levitating' lawsuit over use of 'talk box' recording in remixes
- Arizona reexamining deals to lease land to Saudi-owned farms
Recommendation
-
Singles' Day vs. Black Friday: Which Has the Best Deals for Smart Shoppers?
-
Meghan Markle Steps Out for Birthday Date Night With Prince Harry
-
Bodies of 3 missing swimmers recovered off Florida’s Pensacola coast
-
Selling Sunset’s Amanza Smith Goes Instagram Official With New Boyfriend
-
Outgoing North Carolina governor grants 2 pardons, 6 commutations
-
Chairperson of Alabama’s medical marijuana commission steps down
-
Biden’s inaction on death penalty may be a top campaign issue as Trump and DeSantis laud executions
-
Teenager charged after throwing gas on a bonfire, triggering explosion that burned 17