Kansas City parade shooting not tied to terrorism — police

The mass shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl victory rally was the result of a personal dispute and not linked to terrorism, police said on Thursday.

"There was no nexus to terrorism or homegrown violent extremism. This appeared to be a dispute between several people that ended in gunfire," Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves told reporters.

A mother of two was killed in the shooting, while 22 other people aged between 8 and 47 were also injured. Half of the victims were children.

Three suspects detained, firearms recovered

Police detained three suspects on Wednesday — two juveniles and an adult.

On Thursday, Graves said some bystanders "physically stopped a person who was believed to be involved in the incident" and thanked them for having "acted bravely."  

However, she declined to provide further details about the investigation itself.

"We are working to determine the involvement of others. And it should be noted we have recovered several firearms. This incident is still a very active investigation," she said.

Witnesses recount horror

Chiefs offensive lineman Trey Smith recalled the mass shooting in an interview on the Good Morning America TV program on Thursday.

"I just remember the security guards ushering us through the doors quickly, saying, 'Come on, hurry up, hurry up, hurry up'," the 24-year-old football player said.

"'This is not a joke. It's a life and death situation'," he recalled the guards saying.

He and teammate James Winchester sheltered in a closet with around 20 other people.

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas attended the rally his wife and mother. They ran for safety when they heard shots were fired.

But he said the tragedy would not be cause to cancel similar celebrations in future.

"We have parades all the time. I don't think they'll end. Certainly we recognized the public safety challenges and issues that relate to them," Lucas said at a press conference on Thursday.