RILEY COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating a fatal shooting in Manhattan have made another arrest.
Just after 3a.m. Saturday, Junction City police arrested 24-year-old Jordan Prather of Junction City on a Riley County District Court warrant for first-degree murder and three counts of aggravated assault, according to the Riley County Police Dept. activity report.
These charges were brought by the Riley County Attorney's Office for Prather's involvement in the homicide of Joshua Wardi on February 5, 2022.
At that time, RCPD officers working in the police substation in Aggieville heard gunshots. The officers immediately responded in the direction of the gunfire that occurred outside a bar near 12th and Moro Street, according to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. Officers found a 21-year-old man suffering from a gunshot wound. They also observed an armed man nearby who ran from the area. Two officers chased the suspect on foot, while the third officer remained with the shooting victim and rendered first-aid.
The victim was later identified as Joshua J. Wardi, 21, of Fort Riley. Preliminary information indicated that as the armed suspect fled, he turned the corner onto 12th Street. During the foot chase, one of the RCPD officers fired two rounds at the suspect, striking him in the leg, and causing him to stop part way down the block, between Moro Street and Laramie Street.
Officers secured the handgun and provided medical assistance. No law enforcement officers were injured during the incident.
The shooting suspect was identified as Tremelle R. Montgomery, 19, of Fort Riley. EMS transported him to Ascension Via Christi hospital in Manhattan where he was then transferred to a Topeka hospital. Wardi was pronounced deceased at the scene.
The investigation suggests that earlier Friday night Wardi and Montgomery patronized the same bar in Aggieville. Later, while visiting outside in separate groups of friends, they engaged in a verbal altercation. At that time witnesses say Montgomery pulled out a gun and shot Wardi. Montgomery remains jailed in Riley County, according to online jail records.