KANSAS CITY, Mo. (Scripps News Kansas City) — A long-haul truck driver was recently arrested for the 1996 and 1998 murders of two Kansas City, Kansas, women, and investigators are looking into whether he’s linked to other cold cases, officials said Wednesday.
This booking photo provided by Kansas City, Kan., Police Department shows Gary Dion Davis. DNA evidence led to the arrest of Davis, Kansas City Police Chief Karl Oakman and Wyandotte County District Attorney Mark Dupree said Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023. Davis is jailed on a $500,000 bond for two counts of second-degree murder, the Kansas City Star reported. (Kansas City, Kan., Police Department via AP)
Kansas City, Kansas Police Department Police Chief Karl Oakman and Wyandotte County Prosecuting Attorney Mark Dupree made the announcements during an update on KCKPD’s Cold Case Unit.
KCK has a significant number of unsolved homicides, Chief Oakman says they date back to six decades.
The police department started a cold case squad which went into effect January 2022.
On Wednesday, the KCK police department said they identified suspects in 11 cold cases, and in a news conference detailed four cases. The department said it’s a sign of what’s to come.
“It may not be today, tomorrow, in fact, it may not be this year but there will be a time when you’re in the drive-thru line or the grocery store where we will eventually get you,” said Chief Oakman.
Murder cases of Christina King and Sameemah Mussawir
Gary Dion Davis Sr. is charged with second-degree murder in the deaths of Christina King and Sameemah Mussawir.
On Dec. 25, 1998, King’s body was found behind an abandoned building in Kansas City, Kansas.
Investigators recovered items at the crime scene and sent them to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.
On Nov. 22, 1996, Mussawir’s body was located inside a home in Kansas City, Kansas.
Christina King (left) and Sameemah Mussawir (right) were identified as victims of the same killer by the Kansas City, Kansas Police Department’s cold case unit. (KCK Police via Scripps News Kansas City)
DNA evidence gathered at both scenes was linked to Davis, according to Dupree.
At the time of their murders, a second-degree murder charge was an off-grid person felony, therefore Davis is charged with those and faces life in prison if convicted.
“These charges are the result of the hard work of the Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department and the cold case squad,” Dupree said.
Oakman said Wednesday Davis worked as a truck driver and investigators are looking into whether he’s a suspect in other cases.
“We are continuing to investigate that suspect for other possible cold cases in the Kansas City metro area, as well as within the United States,” Oakman said. “In my experience based on him killing two women, most likely he’s killed more.”
Arvetta Davis, Mussawir’s niece, is still processing her death.
“I don’t even know why he came across her path,” Davis said. “My aunt sewed, she had a transportation business running people up to Chillicothe correctional, she worked as an SRS driver, she had a daycare, she sold dinners, she sold bean pies, she was involved in her family lives, she did it all.”
Mussawir leaves behind two daughters and a large family.
Oakman and Dupree couldn’t immediately provide more information on those cases.
This story was originally published by Scripps News Kansas City, an E.W. Scripps Company.
