Additional Coverage:
OMAHA, Neb. – Omaha police fatally shot a woman Tuesday after she allegedly kidnapped a young boy from a Walmart and slashed him with a knife outside the store.
Deputy Chief Scott Gray reported that the suspect approached a female shopper and her 2- or 3-year-old child inside the Walmart. She brandished a large knife and forcibly took the child, effectively committing a kidnapping. The suspect then ordered the woman to walk ahead of her shopping cart, holding the child at knifepoint.
The trio exited the store and moved down a nearby driveway, where a brief verbal exchange occurred between the two women before police arrived on the scene following a 911 call. Upon officers’ arrival, the suspect began striking the child with the knife, cutting him across the face.
In response, at least one officer fired at the suspect, who died at the scene. Body camera footage shows the woman raising the knife over the child, who was seated in a shopping cart, as officers aimed their weapons.
The child was transported to a hospital for treatment of a significant facial laceration and injuries to his hand. Officials confirmed that the child’s injuries are not life-threatening and he is expected to recover.
Authorities have not determined what motivated the suspect’s actions. Deputy Chief Gray noted the two women were strangers, and the relationship between the child and the woman who was with him remains unclear.
Police are reviewing surveillance footage from inside the store. Gray described the incident as isolated, with the Walmart largely empty during the event and ongoing investigation.
The suspect and the woman with the child appeared to leave the store calmly, drawing little attention from other shoppers, according to Gray. “They kind of just purposely but casually walk out of the store, so I don’t think anybody was actually looking at them as being a suspect of anything,” he said.