A Father’s Day barbecue in north Wichita ended with the death of 28-year-old Hispanic man Aron Lara. On the evening of June 16, 2024, Lara was at a gathering in the 1900 block of N. Jackson Street when a verbal argument with 33-year-old Eric Gonzalez-Gutierrez escalated into gunfire. Witnesses say Gonzalez-Gutierrez left, returned with a rifle, and opened fire, striking an unarmed Lara multiple times. Lara was taken to a local hospital and died during surgery at 10:26 p.m.

Two people with Lara are reported to have returned fire; a 22-year-old man suffered a non-life-threatening gunshot wound to his arm and was hospitalized in stable condition. Investigators recovered 26 shell casings of various calibers from homes and vehicles at the scene, indicating a substantial exchange of gunfire.

Wichita police arrested Gonzalez-Gutierrez the next day on suspicion of first-degree murder. He was charged with premeditated first-degree murder and criminal possession of a firearm by a felon, then released on bond with an ankle monitor; investigators later say he cut off the monitor and a search was launched. The identities and roles of the two people who returned fire remain under investigation.

Did anyone at the barbecue notice what sparked the argument between Lara and Gonzalez-Gutierrez?