Daughter still searches for justice 12 years after father’s homicide

By Emily Rittman

Click here for updates on this story

    RIVERSIDE, Missouri (KCTV) — For more than 12 years, a daughter has waited to see her father’s killer caught. Erricka McCullen insists she won’t give up on receiving justice for her dad.

McCullen remembers her father, Ronald Burns, as a giving and caring man who did not deserve what happened to him inside his Riverside apartment. She said she could call her dad at any time of the day or night. He was there when she needed him.

“He was my best friend,” McCullen said. “I was a daddy’s girl.” She last spoke to her dad by phone as they made plans for him to visit for her daughter’s graduation.

“His last words were, ‘Love you, baby girl,’” McCullen said.

Her father’s coworkers asked police to check on him on May 24, 2010, at his apartment off D’Mons Drive in Riverside. McCullen said Burns worked at ADT at the time of his death.

“He had not shown up for work and had not contacted friends, which was abnormal,” Riverside Police Department Detective Joshua Collins said. “When officers made contact at the apartment, they located the deceased Mr. Burns inside. The Metro Squad investigation started from there.”

Investigators pursued leads. They recovered Burns’ stolen truck. Police though continue to ask for tips in the unsolved homicide case.

“Help us solve this. Try to get closure for the family and justice for the community,” Collins said. “Very few new leads have come in after the initial investigation.”

McCullen hopes someone will have the courage to help her family receive justice. “I cannot even put in words how I really feel,” she said. “I miss my dad.”

“He worked two jobs. He was getting ready to buy a house,” Collins said. “By all accounts, he was a very nice gentleman.”

McCullen and her family members still want to know why this happened.

“There’s not a day that goes by that I wouldn’t give anything to have my daddy back,” McCullen said. “I know it’s got to be a heavy burden. Just come forward please.”

Family members are urging anyone with information to speak up. Anyone can anonymously call the Greater Kansas City Crime Stoppers tips hotline at 816-474-TIPS or use the QR Code. Crime Stoppers offers up to a $2,000 reward for any tip that leads to an arrest for any felony crime.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.