Excelsior Springs man identified as murder suspect involved in shootout with Topeka police

TOPEKA, Kan. — A murder suspect at the center of a police chase through downtown Topeka, Kansas that lead to a shootout with police has been identified as someone from the Kansas City area.

Eric D. Perkins, 33, of Excelsior Springs, Missouri was arrested on Thursday as the primary suspect in a shooting that left one person dead and another wounded in the early morning hours in south Topeka, according to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.

Perkins was critically injured by police following a chase through the city that ended in the downtown area.

It is believed that nine Topeka Police Department officers and one Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office deputy fired their weapons during the incident, according to KBI.

Just after 9:30 a.m. Thursday, Topeka officers responded to a call of a shooting in south Topeka. Upon arrival, they found one person dead and another injured as the result of gunshot wounds.

Police quickly left the scene a short time after when another officer spotted the suspect’s vehicle in the Hi-Crest neighborhood of the city.

A police chase began after officers tried to pull Perkins over and he refused to stop. Perkins began to fire in the direction of pursuing officers who returned fire on several occasions.

The KBI believes that gunshots were fired in the areas of Interstate 70 and Adams Street, 10^th Street and Adams Street, 10^th Street and Madison Street, 10^th Street and Kansas Avenue, and 10^th Street and Quincy.

The chase ended when Perkins’ vehicle crashed into a fire hydrant in the downtown area at the intersection of 6th Street and Kansas Avenue.

Perkins was hit during an exchange of gunfire with officers who were then able to take him into custody. A 38-year-old female passenger also sustained non-life-threatening wounds during the incident. One officer was wounded after being shot during the confrontation but his ballistic vest prevented him from taking more serious injuries.

The KBI reported that Perkins remains in critical, but stable, condition.

The officer who was wounded in the confrontation has been treated and released. The female passenger who was in the same vehicle as Perkins remains hospitalized and is in good condition.

The investigation is ongoing.