Gerald Avery, a 33-year-old Black man, was killed in a shooting in Topeka in the early morning hours of Monday, July 21, 2025. Officers were called about 2:15 a.m. to the 4500 block of Southwest Topeka Boulevard and found Avery with a life‑threatening gunshot wound at the Quick Shop at 45th and South Topeka Boulevard. He was taken to a hospital but died of his injuries.

A second person was also injured and went to a hospital independently with non‑life‑threatening wounds. The Topeka Police Department confirmed Avery’s death as a homicide and said detectives were pursuing leads but had not identified suspects or made arrests. Avery’s killing was listed as the city’s 11th homicide of the year and was one of two unsolved shooting deaths that month, prompting a police press conference about rising violent crime.

Can anyone who was in the 45th and South Topeka Boulevard area around 2:15 a.m. on July 21, 2025, or who has information about these shootings, contact the Topeka Police Department?