BELLEVUE, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska man was fatally shot after breaking into an apartment in the Omaha suburb of Bellevue Saturday night.

Bellevue Police say 21-year-old Tyrell Dalia of Omaha was killed in the incident that happened after 9 p.m. Saturday.

Witnesses told police that Dalia had a gun when he broke into the apartment near 19th Avenue and Main Street in Bellevue.

One of the people inside the apartment confronted Dalia and shot him. Dalia died at the apartment.

Court records show that Dalia was out on bail while awaiting trial for a January incident. Dalia faced two felony charges for trying to escape from police after officers broke up a dispute between him and his ex-girlfriend.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — When Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer took over the department’s top post in 2012, the agency was struggling for ways to curb rampant gun violence. Two years later, homicides have dropped dramatically and tips from the public have helped solve some of Omaha’s most violent crimes.

Much of the credit is going to Schmaderer and his push to improve the department’s relationship with the city’s most crime-ridden sections.

The effort has involved weekly meetings by police with community organizations, churches and individuals. Police also host neighborhood events and community training sessions.

Since 2012, homicides have dropped from 41 through September 2012 to 22 through this September.

Schmaderer notes the percentage of homicides considered solved by police has climbed from 46 percent in 2012 to 81 percent so far this year.

 

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A man accused of assaulting a 76-year-old woman in Omaha now faces a second-degree murder charge.

Omaha police said Friday that the charge against 54-year-old John Gomez was upgraded after the woman died.

Police say Mary McAndrews was found with injuries in her home on Sept. 18. She was taken to an Omaha hospital, but succumbed to her injuries on Wednesday.

Gomez had initially been charged with first-degree assault. Online jail records didn’t indicate an attorney.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Macy man charged with killing a bald eagle is arguing in federal court that prosecutors have greatly overvalued the bird at $10,000.

Lamar Bertucci says the eagle he shot in February is worth only about $2,000.

The bird’s worth could make a difference in Bertucci’s sentence. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jan Sharp says that in federal cases, the costlier the crime, the longer the time.

Bertucci pleaded guilty this year to shooting a bald eagle and a rough-legged hawk near Macy, crimes that carry up to 30 months in prison and $350,000 in fines.

Bertucci argues in his latest cast that when he was convicted in 2009 of possessing eagle parts, the bird was valued at $2,000.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Police have identified the city’s latest homicide.

Police say officers were called to a south Omaha neighborhood around 4 a.m. Saturday for reports of a shooting and found 23-year-old Jose Fabila outside a home with a gunshot wound. Fabila was declared dead at the scene.

Police had not announced any arrests by late Saturday afternoon, but Omaha television station KETV reports that at least five people were taken to police headquarters for questioning.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Volkswind USA has halted its efforts to gain permission to build a wind farm near Hallam and Cortland in southeast Nebraska.

The company asked the Lincoln-Lancaster County Planning Department to put its permit applications on hold. Sara Hartzell of the department says the Oregan-based company wants to do more noise studies and reach out to residents who are concerned about the project. Hartzell says placing an application on hold doesn’t mean the project is dead.

On Thursday, Volkswind USA’s president Jeffrey Wagner made a similar request for the company’s permit applications in Gage County. Wagner says the company wants to fine-tune the wind farm’s layout. He says he doesn’t know when the application process will resume.

Volkswind USA wants to build the wind farm on 7,000 acres of land in Lancaster County and 4,000 acres in Gage County.

A traffic stop for speeding on Interstate 80 in Seward County led to the seizure of 58 lbs. of marijuana and two arrests.

Around 10:30 a.m., Thursday, October 16, a trooper stopped an eastbound 2001 Nissan pickup for speeding just east of the Beaver Crossing exit in Seward County. The trooper was given consent to search the vehicle. The search led to the seizure of 58 lbs. of marijuana. The marijuana, contained in 52 packages, was located wired to the frame and undercarriage of the pickup.

The driver of the vehicle, Emily Guerrero, 60, of Bakersfield, Calif., and a passenger in the vehicle Francisco Herrera-Aguilera, 51, of Bakersfield, Calif., were both lodged in the Seward County Jail, each on a charge of possession of marijuana with intent to deliver.