A 23-year-old man fatally shot by Omaha police southwest of downtown early Sunday had indicated he wanted officers to shoot him, Omaha’s police chief said Tuesday.
Chief Todd Schmaderer said Officers Dominic Lombardo and Justin Georgius tried hard to get Jeramyah Wilson, 23, to put down his gun. Wilson, who was alone in an SUV near 30th and Marcy streets, verbally threatened officers multiple times, Schmaderer said.
An officer told investigators that Wilson was speaking through the driver’s-side window of the SUV and made a quick movement “toward the passenger side of the vehicle, toward an officer who was behind cover.†That’s when Lombardo and Georgius started shooting, striking Wilson. Wilson died later at the Nebraska Medical Center.
“It does bear some resemblance to ‘suicide by cop,’†Schmaderer said. Wilson made some statements to that effect, he said, and those statements were recorded on police body cameras.
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A relative of Wilson’s, contacted Tuesday afternoon, said the family may comment after they have had time to process the information about what happened.
A 9 mm Ruger handgun was found on the floor of the SUV. Police said two shell casings also were recovered. They are thought to be from the shots Wilson fired that brought seven police officers to the scene. The gun was empty of bullets when it was recovered.
Audio of the incident was clear, but the video is partially obstructed because officers had taken cover.
Wilson’s mother lives in the area and was among the witnesses at the scene, Schmaderer said. He said she pleaded with her son to “drop the gun and surrender.â€
The audio of the incident will be released after a grand jury investigation.
Schmaderer said Wilson can be heard saying, “’I’ll smoke you all, I swear to God. They’re about to make me do some sh**, Mom. Go inside.â€
Wilson, who was found to be in possession of a stolen gun, continued to resist the officers’ pleas to surrender for six minutes, Schmaderer said. He also continued to threaten the officers.
“Shoot me, bitch,†Wilson said, according to Schmaderer. “I’m gonna shoot you.â€
Police said the two officers fired a total of 11 rounds.
The investigation is ongoing with the aid of the Nebraska State Patrol and the Sarpy County Sheriff’s Office. Schmaderer said the investigation should be completed by the end of the week.
“The officers are being interviewed today, right as we are speaking,†Schmaderer said Tuesday afternoon. “I’ll tell you that from what I have seen, there’s nothing about this incident that has me worried about anything (the officers) did wrong from a policy standpoint.â€
Lombardo, who has been with the department 1½ years, and Georgius, who has 14 years of service, have been placed on paid administrative leave.
Wilson was awaiting trial in Douglas County District Court on two counts of felony terroristic threats. He also was awaiting trial in a separate case on several misdemeanors, including second-offense driving while intoxicated.