Topeka Police Department weighs-in on high murder rates

TOPEKA (KSNT)- The Topeka Police Department recorded 18 murders last year. Now less than five months into 2023, the city has already seen 14 with seven coming in January alone and two more this past week.

Currently, Topeka is on pace to have one of the deadliest years in recent memory. Topeka Police Chief Bryan Wheeles said Monday and Tuesday’s killings are not connected, although they were less than 24 hours apart.

The year 2017 was actually the deadliest year on record for the City of Topeka, but data from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation shows that murder rates have been falling since then, until now.

“Some of the historical causes we have seen, illegal drug use, domestic violence, other activities of a criminal nature, that we’re trying to address to stop this kind of violence before it starts,” said Topeka Police Chief Bryan Wheeles. “We always ask our community members, and I am very proud of the community response we often get, when they see suspicious activity or criminal activity, to report that to the authorities.”

Shawnee County is not alone in high gun violence, as The Gun Violence Archive says the U.S. is on pace to pass last year’s gun-related deaths by over 4,000. This would mark the most gun-related deaths in over seven years.

Wheeles wants the community to know that the TPD sees the problem and rising murder rates, and they are working with the Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office as well as the District Attorney’s Office to do anything they can to stop crime from happening at home.