KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A security guard shot and killed a man in the parking lot of an apartment complex at 64th and Manchester late Thursday night, police said.

KMBC reported that security guards were towing illegally parked cars off the property at the time. Apparently one security guard was approached by the owner of one of the vehicles. The two argued and the car owner allegedly shot the guard in the arm.

The security guard returned fire, killing Russell D. Brown, 28.

Brown's family and neighbors call it a waste and they want answers, KMBC's Jim Flink reported.

"I couldn't get into the apartment complex and I knew what was going on. And when I finally got in, I saw my brother laying there dead," Brown's sister, Michelle, said.

A week ago, residents at Ashley Park received a flier telling them that cars without proper licenses and registrations would get towed at the owner's expense.

"He was trying to stop them, and he had all the proper paperwork in his pocket and he said, 'Here it is,'" Michelle Brown said.

"Well, the guy didn't want to hear it. He just pulled out that whip and cracked it, like in slavery days," witness Dinah told Flink.

"They had a bull whip and they started whipping my brother and his girlfriend. His pregnant girlfriend tried to help him," Michelle Brown said.

Flink said that is when the confrontation escalated. Shot were exchanged and Russell Brown was killed.

Flink said he tried to contact the security firm, Superior Protective Services. No one answered the door or answered Flink's phone calls.

Police continue to investigate the shooting.