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Several Family Members Charged in Omaha Killings

Andrea Kruger
Andrea Kruger

(AP) — A man accused of killing four people in three separate shootings in and around Omaha this summer is not the only one facing charges in the three-week rampage.

Several of Nikko Jenkins’ relatives also face charges, with prosecutors saying Jenkins’ uncle, mother, sister and a cousin all played roles in the ambushes.

Court records show Jenkins’ uncle, Warren Levering, has been charged with first-degree murder and weapons counts in the Aug. 21 shooting death of 33-year-old Andrea Kruger. Prosecutors say that while Jenkins pulled Kruger from her SUV and shot her, Levering helped carry out the carjacking and tried to destroy evidence in the crime.

Jenkins’ sister, Erica Jenkins, faces charges in all four shootings, including first-degree murder and weapons charges in the Aug. 19 killing of 22-year-old Curtis Bradford.

Lincoln Airport Lands Grant for Atlanta Service

lincoln-airport(AP) — The Lincoln Airport Authorities has been awarded a $750,000 grant that could help the airport land service to Atlanta.

The authority says the money would be used to guarantee revenue for possible Delta flights. The money would provide some financial protection for Delta if first-year revenue from the Lincoln-Atlanta flights falls short of expectations.

Airport Authority Executive Director John Wood says the grant will help Lincoln as it continues negotiating with Delta on flight details. Wood says that if the talks are successful, Delta probably would begin the flights in June next year as the airline launches its summer schedule.

Meeting to Address Future of Health Care in Nebraska

UNMC(AP) — Two state lawmakers and a national health-policy expert are set to speak about the future of health care in Nebraska.

The University of Nebraska Medical Center is hosting a health-policy meeting on Wednesday from 9 a.m. to noon at the Michael F. Sorrell Center for Health Science Education.

The keynote speaker is Alan Weil, executive director of the National Academy for State Health Policy. Nebraska state Sens. Kathy Campbell and Mike Gloor are also scheduled to lead the meeting.

More than 150 health care experts from around the state are meeting to talk about Nebraska’s health care system. Campbell and Gloor are leading a legislative push this year to find ways to control health care costs at the state level while improving quality.

Grand Island Man Gets 8 Years in Assaults on Stepdaughters

sex-offenders(AP) — A 40-year-old Grand Island man has been given six to eight years in prison for sexually assaulting his two stepdaughters.

The man was sentenced on Monday. The man had pleaded no contest to two counts. Another count was dropped in exchange for the man’s plea.

The Associated Press is not using the man’s name, in order to protect the girls’ privacy.

Prosecutors say the assaults began in 2008. One of the girls is 13 now; the other is 9.

Real Estate Investors Purchase FBI Office in Omaha

FBI(AP) — A real estate investment firm has bought the Omaha office that houses the FBI field office and agreed to lease it back to the government.

Easterly Patners says it has purchased the 112,196-square-foot building as an investment. It is fully leased to the federal government.

The building that was built in 2009 earned gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, program.

Easterly is a private firm based in Washington D.C. that specializes in U.S. government real estate investments.

Prosecutors to Seek Death Penalty in Omaha Killing Spree

ne-supreme-court-gavel(AP) — Prosecutors feel confident they have the evidence to convict an Omaha man charged with killing four people in the weeks after he was released from prison this summer.

They now must prepare for his likely insanity defense and how that might affect prosecutors’ attempt to seek the death penalty.

Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine said Wednesday that he would seek the death penalty for 27-year-old Nikko Jenkins, who was ordered Tuesday to stand trial on four counts of first-degree murder and a bevy of weapons counts. Jenkins is accused of shooting four people to death in three separate ambushes carried out in August.

Kleine presented incriminating evidence during Jenkins’ preliminary hearing Tuesday, including police testimony that Jenkins’ DNA was found on a 12-gauge deer slug recovered from one victim’s vehicle.

Cops Nab 55 Pounds of Weed in Douglas County

douglas-county-sheriff(AP) — Authorities say more than 55 pounds of marijuana has been found in a vehicle in eastern Nebraska.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office says 35-year-old David Costanzo was stopped Wednesday morning on Interstate 80. Officers say Costanzo’s vehicle was stopped on suspicion of following too closely.

A dog on the department’s K-9 unit led to the vehicle being searched. More than 55 pounds of marijuana were found in the rented car’s trunk.

Costanzo was arrested and faces possession with the intent to deliver a controlled substance and no tax stamp. Court records do not list an attorney.

Man Surrenders in Omaha Bank Robbery Case

omaha-police(AP) — Authorities say a man has surrendered to police in connection with an Omaha bank robbery.

Police say 51-year-old Scott Prine turned himself in around 1 a.m. Wednesday at police headquarters. Prine remains in custody in Douglas County Jail. Online court records don’t list the name of his attorney.

Police say a man entered a Wells Fargo branch on Tuesday afternoon, pulled out a dark handgun and demanded money.

A clerk put an undisclosed amount of money into a bag and gave it to the man, who left out the front door.

Nebraska Cottonwood Named Largest Known in U.S.

university-of-nebraska(AP) — An eastern cottonwood tree near Beatrice is being recognized as the largest known species of its kind in the country.

The University of Nebraska Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources says Tuesday the tree beat out an eastern cottonwood in Kansas and will be named national champion by the conservation group American Forests.

The Nebraska tree is 10 miles northeast of Beatrice on land owned by Kevin Naber.

It stands 88 feet tall with a 108-foot canopy and a trunk circumference of 36 feet, 9 inches.

Graham Herbst, a community forestry specialist with the Nebraska Forest Service, says the tree dwarfs those around it and can be seen from far off.

The Kansas cottonwood had taken the title after Nebraska’s previous champ near Seward was downed in a 2007 storm.

Lincoln Woman Sentenced After Gun Found in Chili

Danielle Cherecwich
Danielle Cherecwich

(AP) — A Lincoln woman was sentenced to prison on firearm charges for an incident last spring in which she hid a gun in a pot of chili.

26-year-old Danielle Cherecwich was sentenced Tuesday to six to nine years in prison.

She was arrested April 21 on firearm charges, including being a felon in possession of a firearm, after an officer stopped her car, which had reportedly been used in a failed attempt to pass a fake check earlier that month.

Cherecwich was on parole out of Iowa and as a convicted felon couldn’t legally possess a firearm.

An initial search didn’t turn up a gun, but when officers checked a container of chili at her feet, they found a loaded .25-caliber handgun.

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