Kansas City man dead after Saturday shooting caused his car to roll into restaurant patio

A 20-year-old Kansas City man died Tuesday morning from a shooting Saturday night on Southwest Boulevard.

Officers received a call about a shooting in the 700 block of Southwest Boulevard around 7:30 p.m.. They found Adrian Velez-Esparza shot in a vehicle that had rolled into the outdoor seating area of La Bodega Restaurant.

Velez-Esparaza was transported to a local hospital, but died Tuesday of his injuries, according to Capt. Jake Becchina, spokesperson with the Kansas City Police Department.

The shooting is now being investigated as a homicide.

Preliminary findings indicate the incident occurred just east of the restaurant after Velez-Esparaza had an interaction with one or more people in another vehicle that led to gunfire, Becchina said.

The killing was the 77th homicide in Kansas City this year, according to data tracked by The Star, which includes fatal police shootings. There had been 100 homicides at this time last year.

Anyone with information is asked to contact homicide detectives directly at 816-234-5043, or the TIPS hotline anonymously at 816-474-TIPS. Up to $25,000 can be awarded for information submitted anonymously to the TIPS hotline.