8 St. Louis Police Officers Honored For Assisting In Lake Ozark Strip Shooting

A number of St. Louis County Police officers who stepped in during the shooting on the Bagnell Dam Strip last July are being honored.

Sergeant Shanna Ostendorf, along with Officers Michael Deck, Kyle Embrey, Dawn Neuman, Justin Bryant, Robert Tosie, John O’Neill, and Kristin Engle all received the “Back the Blue” award, presented by Attorney General Eric Schmitt.

The officers were at a nearby restaurant when the gunfire went off in Lake Ozark and they quickly sprang into action, assisting the Lake Ozark police department in bringing the shooting to a stop.

In total, one person died and four others were injured in what was later determined to be a brawl between rival biker groups.

Tonka Way-Con Ponder of Hickory County was taken into custody in the shooting and he is facing numerous charges.