Mitchell Kaminski
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A witness to a weekend shooting at Columbia’s Cosmo Park that left two people hospitalized says police were already at the park before gunfire erupted.
Initial information suggests the gathering included fraternity and sorority members from Jefferson City and Columbia. Police do not currently have anyone in custody. Royal Lyon, a sophomore at Lincoln University, said he first heard about the event from a group of friends.
Lyon said he arrived at the park around 9:30 p.m. Saturday and estimated the crowd at more than 1,000 people. He described the event as a mix of University of Missouri and LU students until, according to him, “outsiders” showed up and started causing problems.
“We all were celebrating but there was a huge explosion or gun shots, I don’t know what it was and that’s when the shots rang out,” Lyon said. “What ends up happening is a lot of locals joined and from speculation that were locals, they got into it with each other over rap beef at the party and they sent each other. That’s kind of how it unfolded.”
However, Columbia Police Dispatch logs show that officers were in the area for a “peace disturbance” at 9:55 pm. Then at 10:33 p.m., they responded to a call of shots fired in the same location.
Assistant Chief Matt Stephens says CPD is looking into the earlier call to see what happened. He says generally, officers aren’t aware of the details of park reservations, noting that the shooting happened while the park was open to the public.
Stephens said that the first call to police was made by someone who drove by the park and saw the large crowd.
Lyon claims that police initially showed up because someone had called saying the party was getting out of hand.
“They (police) said they (the group) had the pavilion until midnight, there is nothing we can do,” Lyon said.
However, Columbia Parks and Recreation said the event organizers did not reserve the shelter for Saturday night’s gathering.
According to dispatch logs, Cosmo Park has been the subject of 54 police calls so far this year, with 23 of those coming in the past month-and-a-half. During the past year, there have been 236 calls to the park, but only four have resulted in police reports, including Saturday’s shooting.
Lyon tells ABC 17 News that he does not want to return to the park.
“There was just a lot of chaos, chaos at that moment because it was dark. You couldn’t find anyone. You know, again, you had those shots that just rang out, out of nowhere. It sounded like machine guns on top of that,” he said
As the scene cleared, officers reportedly stopped and searched vehicles, causing long lines as attendees attempted to leave the park. Lyon was not one of them.
“I was the first car to leave. I went across the street because I was still trying to retrieve some friends that were in the party. One of them didn’t even have a cell phone. So I’m like ‘I might have to go back inside the party to go retrieve them.’ But I got word that they were OK seconds later and had to proceed on,” Lyon said.
On Monday, officers returned to the scene to continue their investigation. Police focused much of their search around a large picnic shelter and surrounding soccer fields. Investigators were seen collecting evidence, taking photographs and using a K-9 to aid in the search.
“The men and women of the Columbia Police Officers Association are committed to holding these violent criminals accountable for their actions. These incidents are all too frequent and we look forward to a time when we have a fully staffed police department, which will enable us to more effectively focus on the violent criminals who continue to victimize our community,” a CPOA spokesman wrote in a statement to ABC 17 News.
The City of Columbia currently has job postings for a Park Safety Supervisor and park security staff. Columbia Parks and Recreation said police are responsible for overseeing park security operations.
Check back for updates.
