Pure horror unfolded at a Walmart in Nebraska when a 31-year-old woman held a child at knifepoint.
The chilling scene ended with one person losing their life, the Omaha Police Department said in a social media statement.
“How did this escalate so quickly in a public place like Walmart, and could it have been prevented earlier?” one netizen asked after the incident.
Highlights
- A 31-year-old woman was fatally struck outside a Walmart in Nebraska.
- Cops said the incident was an alleged kidnapping.
- Surveillance footage captured Noemi shoplifting a knife from inside the giant retail store.
Pure horror unfolded at a Walmart in Nebraska when a 31-year-old woman held a child at knifepoint
Image credits: KETV
Trigger warning: this article contains graphic details that may be distressing to some.
A 3-year-old boy seemed to be on an ordinary shopping trip with his guardian on Tuesday morning at a Walmart in Omaha, Nebraska.
Surveillance footage captured a woman, later identified as Noemi Guzman, 31, shoplifting a knife from inside the giant retail store.
Image credits: Omaha Police Department
At some point, Noemi then approached the 3-year-old victim and the female shopper.
Brandishing the sharp weapon at them, the attacker threatened the guardian and forced her to walk in front of the shopping cart.
Meanwhile, the armed woman pushed the cart with the boy in it and led them outside the store.
Noemi and the shopper had “some verbal back and forth” for a few minutes until police officers arrived, Deputy Chief Scott Gray was quoted as saying.
Noemi Guzman was captured shoplifting a knife from the store and taking the boy outside
Image credits: Omaha Police Department
A female caller made a 911 call at around 9:13 a.m., asking for police assistance.
Officers were dispatched for a “nature unknown” reason, as the female caller “stopped providing information” to the “call taker,” the Omaha Police Department said in a statement.
Another 911 caller later reported the presence of a woman, armed with a “large kitchen knife,” at the Walmart.
Officers arrived at the scene to find Noemi in the store’s parking lot, while the child was still in the shopping cart.
Image credits: Omaha Police Department
The perpetrator made multiple threats with the knife and refused to put her weapon down, despite verbal commands from the officers to drop the knife.
“She refused to drop the weapon” and slashed the boy, leaving him with a cut on his face, the police department said.
The officers fatally struck the woman with their firearm, and the child’s guardian and a bystander rushed to retrieve the child from the cart.
Noemi received life-saving measures, but was soon declared lifeless at the scene.
Cops said the incident was an alleged kidnapping.
Cops demanded that the alleged kidnapper drop the weapon, but she refused and slashed the boy
Image credits: Tanya Gifford
The child, who sustained a large laceration across the left side of his face and on his hand, was rushed to the hospital for treatment.
The boy, identified by his family as Cyler, is expected to survive.
The family later shared pictures of Cyler with stitches on the side of his head and his hand.
A GoFundMe page, set up to raise funds for the family, said Cyler’s father was at a job interview during the incident
Image credits: Tanya Gifford
A GoFundMe page, set up to raise funds for the family, said Cyler’s father was at a job interview when the incident occurred.
“Due to Cyler's condition and the need for his father to be by his side during recovery and therapy, employment will have to wait,” the fundraiser said.
“This unexpected turn has created financial stress at home, as Cyler's father must focus on his son's healing rather than work,” the message added.
The goal of the page was set at $14K, and so far, $7,795 has been raised.
Image credits: 4029news
Gray said Noemi and the child’s caretaker did not know each other, and it is unclear what provoked the attacker to show this level of aggression.
The deputy chief said the Walmart was fairly empty when the incident took place, and not much attention was drawn towards the attack.
“They kind of just purposely but casually walk out of the store,” Gray said, “so I don't think anybody was actually looking at them as being a suspect of anything.”
The officers involved in the incident were placed on paid critical incident leave
Image credits: JJBers/flickr
Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer said the responding officers acted with “professionalism and direct action,” ultimately saving the child’s life.
“The community can be reassured in knowing that Omaha police officers stand ready to act with courage and decisiveness in the most serious situations to protect the public,” Todd said.
Adhering to the police department’s policy, the officers involved in the incident were placed on paid critical incident leave.
Omaha Mayor John W. Ewing Jr. thanked police for handling the situation and preventing what the police called a “larger tragedy.”
“I am grateful for the department’s professionalism and transparency,” the mayor said.
The circumstances surrounding the incident are still being investigated.
“Poor child,” one commenter wrote online.
“What’s up lately with these knife wielding psychos!!! Scary!” a second said, while a third wrote, “So glad they saved the kid.”
“Sadly this is what the world is coming to,” one netizen commented
