Woman dead, man in custody after Omaha homicide

A man has been charged with homicide in connection to the death of a woman in Omaha on Friday.
Published: Jan. 3, 2025 at 6:48 AM CST|Updated: Jan. 3, 2025 at 7:42 PM CST
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OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - A 39-year-old man was arrested after a 37-year-old woman was killed on Friday morning.

Omaha Police officers responded to a “shots fired” call shortly before 5:30 a.m. They arrived to the scene and found a woman dead with gunshot wounds in an apartment near 72nd and Jones streets. She was later identified as Rebecka Lightner of Omaha.

Officers told First Alert 6 on Friday morning that officers found the suspect, later confirmed to be Brandon Brewer of Omaha, nearby. Omaha Police say the man shot at a police car and led officers on a foot chase that brought them to the area of 72nd and Farnam streets.

Brandon Brewer
Brandon Brewer(Omaha Police Department)

OPD says officers fired back at the suspect, but said they didn’t think they had hit him. They later confirmed that to be true, according to a update Friday night.

“Mr. Brewer was not struck by gunfire but surrendered and was taken into custody,” the OPD release states.

The area was blocked off, impacting traffic during the morning commute, as police searched the path between the crime scene, and where the suspect was arrested, for any possible evidence.

Brewer was booked into Douglas County Corrections to face charges of criminal homicide, use of a weapon to commit a felony, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, and attempted murder of a police officer, according to the release.